Customer Reviews

La Confusion des genres

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

After reading all the reviews, I really was lead to believe that this film was funny and upbeat. Not so! If anything, it was the opposite. Maybe in France this would be considered funny. I don't know and I don't see why. You have a man who I assume is in his late 40's not knowing who he wants to be with and cannot seem to accept is homosexuality. Of course. This seems to be the theme of most gay films or gay love stories. He as usual wants it all, male and female lovers. He even goes so far as to manipulate his female "girlfriend" and convinces her to marry him and he is even "confused" about marrying. Oh well. Anyone confused yet? They even end up having a baby. Poor baby! To be born in this confused mess!! Then he is pursued by a young man who for some unknown reason, is "head over heels " crazy for this guy who is apparently twice his age. The older man at first rejects him and quickly decides he wants the young man who is played by Cyrille Thouvenin. The young man is even willing to let this older creep have his way and says he can have "everything." I was dismayed to see Cyrille in this mess called a film. He seems to take or is only offered parts that are to me without substance. He has much more potential for playing characters with substance whether they are gay or straight. As far as gay films/characters go. He was outstanding and beautiful in Juste une question D'amour along with Stephan Gueran Tillie. I highly recommend this film. As for La Confusion Des Genres, forget it. Not worth the time or your money. You might end up more confused from watching this mess.

CONFUSION OF GENDERS is one of those odd Gallic films that mixes angst with social comment, a generous dollop of both heterosexual and homosexual trysts, Gallic humor, and bizarre philosophy - and it does so with considerable panache. While some would categorize this as a cerebral sexual romp, the quality of the film as directed by Ilan Duran Cohen is indeed fast paced but covers more comment about contemporary sexual mores than most.

Alain (Pascal Greggory) is a lawyer working for Laurence (Nathalie Richard), is frankly bisexual, and the two volley the concept of a marriage of convenience. Though Alain is frank with Laurence that he prefers men sexually, he does want a normal life and family. Enter Christophe (Cyrille Thouvenin) a very young lad who prefers older men and within moments Alain is bedding Christophe. Yet he also has a physical liaison with Laurence. Alain is assigned a case of a prisoner up for murder and in visiting Marc (Vincent Martinez) in the prison, Alain is asked to contact Marc's girlfriend Babette (Julie Guyet) to transmit his messages of love - in return for proposed sexual favors for Alain! Alain's interplay with Babette is yet another excursion into exploring relationships.

How these disparate characters intertwine both in and out of bed and the consequences of the acting out the spectrum of sexuality is comical yet also with a tinge of reality that results in life changes for most of the people involved. Each of the actors is excellent and there is enough eye candy for viewers in search of same! And though some may react as though this were a French soap opera for the big screen, there is a lot more food for thought that develops after the final closing scenes. Recommended for those who enjoy double entendres. In French with English subtitles. Grady Harp, November 2004

The quality of this DVD is poor. The DVD "froze" during the last ten minutes of the movie. (This happened upon an initial purchase, but also with the subsequent replacement purchase.) Obviously, poor manufacturing and quality control.

This is what the film is. Even the cover may confuse as the boy pictured on it, appears for 20 sec and brings nothing to the story...
The main character isn't likable at all, the plot drags. I didn't find anything "entertaining" in this film. It almost made me fall asleep. Second star for acting.
In general - failure.

In "Confusion of Genders," French director Ilan Duran Cohen's central character Alain (Pascal Greggory) has so many sexual alliances that you literally have to draw a diagram with him in the center and arrrows pointing to his many lovers to keep the story straight. (No pun intended.) He and his legal colleague Laurence (Nathalie Richard) manage to make a baby although they each acknowledge that they are not in love with each other. ("Love is a prison." On the other hand, someone in the film opines that "a marriage of convenience is so sad.") Then Alain is pursued-- and caught-- by the young frisky Christophe (Cyrille Thouvenin) and they eventually move in together while the pregnant Laurence is pretty much left on her own. (One of the most erotic scenes in the film has Christophe and Alain brushing their teeth while wearing only their underwear.) Alain also gets a crush on a client of his, Marc, (Vincent Martinez) who is in prison for murder and wants him to be the go-between to take messages to his girlfriend Babette (Julie Gayet), a quite beautiful hairdresser. As you would suspect by now, Alain is attracted to her as well.

To call Alain indecisive is an understatement. While his ego must be bursting with all these different people of both sexes vying for his affection, I had trouble grasping his charisma. But then I'm not French. The movie, on the other hand, is beautifully filmed. Certainly no one does well-lit angst better than the French.

Recently I've been renting a lot of gay movies because I was buying them and sadly disappointed by the unhappy endings so many of them have! This was a great movie with interesting characters, a plot line that was followable and attractive people, both gay, straight, bi and well just about everything. Purchased the movie right after watching it. Following a story of a man who loves. Doesn't matter what the sex is, just loves. There are women, there are men. It's a good movie. I recommend it.

Poor Alain......what a strange man. He is damaged goods, and perhaps that's why we are shown several scenes of his mother:: The Queen of Damaged Goods. Alain can sometimes show passion with someone, but he can't be constant with someone.....he can't be monogamous. What a question mark of a human being!

But it is not only Alain who needs our pity:: Poor Christophe!! Alain is the opposite of what this young man needs (recall, if you will, what C's own father says that he needs). Cyrille Thouvenin does a very good job with the Christophe role, and his performance alone makes this review's 4th Star. (Thouvenin is able to do oh-so-much more in that greater French production: "JUST A QUESTION OF LOVE" --Read about IT, get IT; you won't be sorry)

PS: Alain's life is not just one of Confusion; it is one of utter chaos.

Confusion of Genders, directed by Ilan Duran Cohen, looks at the lives of several young people living in the city. Alain (Pascal Gregory) and Laurence (Nathalie Richard) play lawyers who are sleeping with each other and sometimes love each other, then hate each other then love each other again. Alain as it turns out is bi-sexual or gay (not really sure) and develops a strong sexual relationship for Christophre (Cyrille Thouvenin) a young farm boy. This story only becomes more disorganized when one of Alain clients Marc (Vincent Martinez) wants him to deliver a message to his ex-girlfriend Babbette (Julie Guyet) and if Alain does this then he will have sex with him. Alain wants this in the beginning, but then develops feeling for Babbett, while still having feelings for Christophre and also for Laurence.
If you have made it through all this, then you can see why Confusion of Genders really starts to deteriate at a rapid pace from having potential of developing real human emotions and relations to a free for all in the sack. The main character, Alain, acts like a hormonal teenager trying to screw anything with a hole and Laurence keeps taking this man back; you wonder were her smarts are (she is a lawyer) . The director does nothing to steer this film in anyway and just lets it meander until it could be an advertisement for an STD commercial. This movie does nothing to explore human emotion or how genders effect those emotions/relationships, but adds only chaos and revulsion to be in any type of relationship with people who really don't love themselves.

Alternately oh-so-serious and laugh-out-loud funny, this one is a delight from beginning to end. It's rare that a film featuring a cadre of unlikable dolts (save adorable Christophe) comes off this well. Terrific character study of the messed-up and silly bourgeuois

This delicious little concoction is an imaginative and romantic cinematic pastry from France. It is fast-paced, with a enchanting cast, great story, and a witty, satyrical, decidedly Gallic slant on life. Pascal Greggory is perfect as Alain, the confused, seductive, fortyish lawyer who loves self-doubting Laurence, his law partner (pregnant with his child) as well as beautiful and determined Christoph, the younger brother of a former lover. Their ambidextrous loves scenes are hedonistic, hilarious, and delightful. This erotic stew (to mix my culinary metaphors) is made even more tasty by the addition of a few other spices: Alain's beautiful, doomed client, Marc, and his erstwhile girlfriend. A multi-faceted gem which stands up to multiple viewings and gives much whimsy and satisfaction. Alain finds that he can indeed, as Christoph promises, have it all.