Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Might Be a Scandal Stateside, but a Real Charmer on the French Riviera., November 26, 2008
"Priceless" (Hors de prix) is a romantic comedy of a sort only the French would make. Jean Simon (Gad Elmaleh) is a bartender at a posh hotel on the French Riviera so conditioned to fulfill the guests' every wish that he can't say "no". Irene Mercier (Audrey Tautou) is an attractive young woman kept by a wealthy older man whom she hopes to marry to secure a life of luxury. When Irene's companion Jacques (Vernon Dobtcheff) falls asleep and spoils her plans for the evening, Irene dejectedly saunters to the hotel bar, where she mistakes Jean for a rich guest. Jean sheepishly accommodates her mistake, and they have a drunken fling. When she returns to the hotel a year later, engaged to Jacques, their mutual attraction threatens her marriage plans, Jean's job, and everyone's equilibrium.
This is a genuinely charming and funny film, but I had to laugh at its effrontery as well as it script. "Priceless" adopts a jaunty, optimistic tone at the point when Jean and Irene begin prostituting themselves to rich patrons. This film would not be made in the Untied States. It accepts the casual exchange of sex for money as an amusing and self-evident aspect of life, and sexual jealousy simply does not exist. Irene couldn't be more charming than when she attempts to educate a smitten Jean on the arts of gold-digging and seduction. Irene and Jean's meal tickets, the wealthy bon vivants that keep them in designer fashions, are interesting and smart people themselves, which helps elevate the film.
And there is always something interesting going on the background. I enjoyed director Pierre Salvadori's peeks behind the scenes at how luxury hotels function. I was impressed by his respect for the support staffs that keep the hotels running, and it enhanced the feeling of grandeur that Irene single-mindedly seeks. "Priceless" was obviously inspired by "Breakfast at Tiffany's", a film that I don't care for. It is not as coy about the lady's profession, however. And Jean and Irene are much more appealing and good-humored leads. "Priceless" is a very good-looking film, a scandalous tale that wisely gives no hint of scandal, with a smart, funny script. There are no bonus features on the First Look 2008 DVD. Subtitles are available in English SDH and Spanish.
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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not so much Priceless as Worthless, July 9, 2009
I confess I'm usually a sucker for French films. Ever since seeing a young Gerard Depardieu in Tenue de Soiree back in the mid-80s I've appreciated the irreverant edge often found in low-budget high-intellect French movies. So of course I was prepared to enjoy Hors de Prix.
Unfortunately my expectations were defeated abruptly. Irine (the Audrey Tautou character) is so utterly without charm or redeeming features that one simply does not feel Jean's love for her is credible - or, conversely, one feels that if Jean loves her he is a cretin. The sequence in which he seeks her out and apologizes for pretending to be rich, and in which she then bankrupts him by forcing him to buy her expensive meals and clothing, isn't funny - it's just painful. Irine is an unpleasant grasping whore and Jean is a simpleton. Their love (if such it can be called) isn't inspiring or charming, it's just unbelievable.
Whereas Pretty Woman was unreal enough to create a fantasy world in which True Love could triumph, Hors de Prix is too real and so we never believe the central premise: that a whore can find redemption through the constancy of a man's devotion. It's just a boring movie, no matter how many designer gowns and shoes and watches are on display. Even the scene in which Irine tells Jean how to seduce, how to be a gigolo, is flat.
While the majority of reviews for this movie are positive, I truly can't understand why. The cinamatography isn't particularly innovative, the direction is pedestrian, the script is flat and the central premise is unbelievable. In short, this is one of those French films that just falls flat on its face and never gets up (Cache is another that springs to mind). Save your time and money. This is a movie where you don't even care that the sub-titles do a bad job 30% of the time.
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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Priceless is Breakfast at Tiffany's updated, set on the Riviera., January 20, 2009
This gem sparkles like diamonds on display in Tiffany's. Audrey Tautou shows her physical beauty and amazing acting range, pulling off a seemingly impossible character arc from selling her self to the highest bidder to finding true love. Twists along the way let us see the world from all points of view, a rare thing in storytelling. Having it all feel seamless and natural is an amazing tour de force by actors, writers, film crew and the director. "Priceless" is one of the very few romantic comedies that can be watched again without losing an ounce of its punch. And whoever did the costumes for Ms. Tautou deserves an Academy Award.
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