Product Details

• Actors: Juliette Binoche, Denis Lavant, Daniel Buain, Klaus-Michael Grüber, Marion Stalens
• Directors: Leos Carax
• Writers: Leos Carax
• Producers: Alain Dahan, Albert Prévost, Bernard Artigues, Christian Fechner, Hervé Truffaut
• Format: Color, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: French
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Miramax
• DVD Release Date: January 13, 2004
• Run Time: 125 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000DZ3DW
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #37,304 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The Lovers on the Bridge" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

How can a movie be so ludicrous and so ecstatic at the same time? The Lovers on the Bridge stars Juliette Binoche as a street person (there, in a nutshell, is the ludicrous part) who was formerly an artist, but began to go blind and whose life fell apart as a result. She hooks up with a homeless street performer (Denis Lavant) who lives on a bridge in the middle of Paris that has been cordoned off for repairs. He falls madly in love with her; she can't bear the thought of being close to anyone. Both are more than a little irrational. But this banal scenario is merely the pretext for a series of lush and stunning images--including midnight water-skiing, fireworks displays, wandering through falling snow, burning posters in subway tunnels--and richly committed performances from the actors. It's not quite as overwhelming on video as it is on a movie screen, but there's such a gushing of emotional images that it's hard to resist the angst and yearning passion. Though the film dives into some cliches, it manages to avoid others; when Binoche's wealthy family starts looking for her, a frightened Lavant tries to keep her hidden away, and you really don't know whether their relationship can possibly survive. An unusual and sweeping film--and an example of the power of visual images to create a state of rapture. --Bret Fetzer

Product Description

Martin Scorsese presents Academy Award(R)-winning star Juliette Binoche (Best Supporting Actress 1997, THE ENGLISH PATIENT, CHOCOLAT) in a uniquely uplifting story of two misfits who risk everything for love! A homeless artist who is losing her sight, Michele (Binoche) finds herself drawn into a passionate relationship with a troubled street performer named Alex. Then, despite all obstacles, they together find love and shelter on the famed Pont-Neuf bridge in Paris. But, in time, their unlikely love will be tested as Michele's secret past catches up with her! With memorable performances from an outstanding cast, you'll be swept away by the stirring romance of this wonderfully inspired motion picture!

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A film that puts a face on the homeless, August 4, 2000

By	J. lopez "Joe Vector" (Buffaloro) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Lovers on the Bridge [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Lovers on the Bridge is an intensely disturbing but ultimately life affirming film about a young woman artist named Michele,who after being jilted by her Lover decides to take to the street and live as a vagabond.She eventually takes up residence,with her cat Louisiana,on a bridge in Paris over the Seine river that's closed for repairs.She meets a young homeless man named Alex who has been on the street,the bridge in particular,much longer than Michele.He's lonely and he falls for her instantly.She's terrified of intimacy after what happened with her former Lover.To complicate matters,she has a rare eye disease that is destroying her eyesight.Binoche is totally convincing in her role.She conveys intelligence and an ethereal quality,you wonder how she could have come into this situation.It's easily an Oscar caliber performance.You wonder if she actually did live on the street during production.Denis Lavant as Alex,an insecure,shy,but ever hopeful street performer is just as effective as Binoche.You can feel his pain and frustration just by watching the expressions on his face.In spite of the situation he's in,he still inspires hope.The Director takes great care with the subject matter.He handles the issue of homelessness with compassion,respect,and affection.He wisely remains objective and allows the viewer to simply watch Michele and Alex's relationship develop.He never attempts to get you to pity or feel sorry for them.My only complaint with the story is that we never learn enough about Alex's past.How he reached this point and why.Filled with lush cinematography(the streets of Paris,the Seine river,some classic art work),an honest portrayal of the homeless,terrific performances by a talented cast,and some mesmerizing visuals(a fireworks display,water skiing on the Seine,Alex as a human flamethrower),Lovers on the Bridge is a film well worth your time.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Scent of Heartbreak, March 20, 2005

By	David S. Jenkins (On the Road) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Proof positive that the French function on an entirely different intellectual plane that their American counterparts. It's sometimes hard to believe that our two cultures inhabit the same planet. Imagine if your only island of sanity and security was an endangered bridge in the midst of one of the world's most exquisite cities. Imagine yourself without love or hope in the center of the most romantic of capitals. Imagine the moist chill as you awaken, hung over, under a sheet of plastic and litter, knowing your day holds nothing but the need to beg and steal to survive, devoid of any hope for salvation. And then imagine it all somehow turning towards a warmer sun... at least for the moment... after a crime you may or may not have committed. Think and feel what that moment would taste like. Binoche is captivating, riveting in a performance of courage and risk, an extraordinary actress by any measure. Paris has never seemed more beautiful, especially when devoid of human traffic in the hours where those from the other side of life wander its streets. An incredible film, and for anyone who has known heartbreak, a work that will imprint itself on your heart.

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A modern Fairytale, July 1, 2000

By	"diarmuidohanlon" (NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lovers on the Bridge [VHS] (VHS Tape)

After Leos Carax's 1986 film Mauvais Sang (come on Miramax release it!) Juliette Binoche begged her then lover and director to never film her as a madonna again, and so the seeds for Les Amants du Pont Neuf were sown. Mauvais Sang features a luminous and fetishised Juliette Binoche as a mask like presence, with no physicallity. This was carried thorough to the wonderful The Unbearable Lightness of Being, but Carax exploded the image in his film. The story is simple, two down and outs meet fall in love, yet despite the harsh realities of life, and love, on the streets they live out an exciting and romantic (in all the senses of the word) existance. This movie is relevant for its amazing visual and tour de force performances. Binoche is simply standout, she seems to live the role, something she later admitted deeply disturbed her. The film is fabulously directed from the grainy opening sequence to the amazing fireworks scene and the exilirating conclusion. The film is littered with cinematic allusions from truffauts Les Quatre cents Coups, to L'Atlante. In terms of context the film is amazing because it juxtaposes harsh realities, the opening sequence and fairytale like fantasy. We are led to question what is actually real, from Binoche apparerntly committing murder to the street littered with gigantic litter. In the end Les Amants du Pont Neuf is a film which needs multiple viewing and some explaining or knowledge of French New Wave cinema to be wholly comprehended, yet it is cwertainly accessible for the majority of casual cinema goers! The film, as I always predicted, is only now beginning to get the recognition it trully deserves. Binoche has avoided this type of movie since, although Michael Hanekes wonderful Code Unknown, though on a smaller and more subjued canvas, has many similarities. Roll on the US release of that one too. And Miramax, its about time you beagan releaseing this type of movie on DVD, youre beginning to lag behind the other companies such as Fox Lorber and Criterion!