After Sex (1997)

78% of critics liked it
(18 reviews)
70% of users liked it
(192 ratings)

A middle-aged woman temporarily abandons her role as wife and mother to embark upon a mad love affair with a man 20 years her junior. Up until the time she meets handsome young Emilio, Diane Clovier had a relatively happy life with her husband, kids and career. Emilio, with his amoral charm, is the… More A middle-aged woman temporarily abandons her role as wife and mother to embark upon a mad love affair with a man 20 years her junior. Up until the time she meets handsome young Emilio, Diane Clovier had a relatively happy life with her husband, kids and career. Emilio, with his amoral charm, is the antithesis of her life and Diane throws herself into a heated frenzy of lovemaking and romance with him. She shows little regard for the destruction she causes within her family. Her husband Phillipe, a lawyer, finds out about the affair, but does nothing to stop it in the hope that she will come to her senses. But as her relationship with Emilio grows hotter, it looks as if Diane may be lost forever. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 37 min.
Directed By: Brigitte Roüan
Genres: Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Sep 27, 1997 Wide
On DVD: Sep 13, 2005

Critic Reviews

Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail
Narcissistic, skin-deep, cautionary tale about the dangers of middle-aged married women having flings with young men.
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
A hauntingly honest and provocative look at what an all-consuming love can in fact consume.
Stanley Kauffmann, New Republic
Rouan's writing, as far as can be judged from subtitles, is pointed and vital. Her performance is superb.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
By the end of the film, we have come to admire Rouan's courage as a performer and a filmmaker, in following Diane's mania as far as it will go.
James Berardinelli, ReelViews
Weak, superficial, and unconvincing, it turns what could have been a searing experience into a trite, overwrought melodrama.
Kevin Lally, Film Journal International
This raw, compelling drama of amour fou is an emotional tour de force for Roüan.
Ed Scheid, Boxoffice Magazine
The film is dominated by the raw intensity of Rouan's performance.
Stephen Farber, Movieline
The French may imbue romantic and sexual turmoil with a bit too much sturm and drang, but at least they examine intimate emotions that Americans nervously avoid.
, E! Online
In the end, pursuit of shallow torrid sex can't fully explain her sketchy motivation for discarding her perfect life, but the tragic overtones are palpable throughout.
Liz Braun, Jam! Movies
Rouan succeeds in showing both the dark and light sides of passion.
Harvey S. Karten, Compuserve
Wonderful at bringing out an adage repeated by Diane: 'When you're twenty and love goes wrong, you cry because you think you'll never love anyone again. After 40, you cry because it's far more likely that you never will again.'
Steve Rhodes, Internet Reviews
an unusual film about human sexual relations - both because it's told completely from the woman's perspective and because it shows graphically but always tastefully the heat of passion.

Read all 12 critic reviews

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Cast

Brigitte Roüan
as Diane Clovier
Patrick Chesnais
as Philippe Clovier
Boris Terral
as Emilio

Nils Tavernier
as Francois Narou
Jean-Louis Richard
as Weyoman-Lebeau
Françoise Arnoul
as Mme. Lepluche

See full cast

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