L' Appartement (The Apartment) (1996)

83% of users liked it
(5,351 ratings)

With a plot more tangled than a spider's broken web, this French drama follows the romantic obsession of Max (Vincent Cassel), a young corporate hotshot who leaves his successful new world behind to search for his elusive lost love Lisa (Monica Bellucci). His mad quest begins after he accidentally… More With a plot more tangled than a spider's broken web, this French drama follows the romantic obsession of Max (Vincent Cassel), a young corporate hotshot who leaves his successful new world behind to search for his elusive lost love Lisa (Monica Bellucci). His mad quest begins after he accidentally overhears Lisa's melodic voice speaking in the phone booth next door. But before he knows it she is gone. Still, he is so elated that he abandons his plans, lies to his fiancee, and after leaving his luggage with his pal Lucien (Jean-Philippe Ecoffey), sets off to find her. The hunt leads to a fabulous apartment, where he saves a girl from a suicide thinking that she is Lisa. But this girl, Alice (Romane Bohringer) is as drab and mousy as Max's Lisa is beautifully feline. Max becomes involved with Alice, unaware that she also dates Lucien. Meanwhile the real Lisa attempts to break free from her obsessive rich lover who may have murdered his wife. For this reason, she continues to avoid her apartment, which she has generously loaned to Alice. When these characters collide, the stage is set for a tragic denouement. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 56 min.
Directed By: Gilles Mimouni
Genres: Drama, Romance, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense

In Theaters: Jul 27, 1996 Wide
On DVD: Aug 22, 2006

Critic Reviews

Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Enigmatic romantic thriller that follows along the lines of Hitchcock.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...at least this version isn't saddled with a lead performance from the notoriously stiff Josh Hartnett.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Morgan G

A brilliant French film that dazzles by its complexity. Given the intrinsic similarities between certain characters, it can be hard to keep up, especially in French, but it's not too difficult. It's complicated enough to really engage the audience but not difficult enough to… More
A brilliant French film that dazzles by its complexity. Given the intrinsic similarities between certain characters, it can be hard to keep up, especially in French, but it's not too difficult. It's complicated enough to really engage the audience but not difficult enough to get you too lost. Brilliant acting, Cassel should be far more admired then he is.
Fascade F

Despite the French/Spanish audio language barrier substituted for English subtitles, this slow movie just out of curiosity alone will have you fixed in front of the screen until the final take. Totally out of this world awesome twists of a man (Victor Cassell) almost ready to tie the… More
Despite the French/Spanish audio language barrier substituted for English subtitles, this slow movie just out of curiosity alone will have you fixed in front of the screen until the final take. Totally out of this world awesome twists of a man (Victor Cassell) almost ready to tie the knot until he inadvertently runs into an old love flame (Monica Bellucci). This continuous romp in search of her throws in characters into the constantly twisting storyline that never lets you down. The final scene in this movie will have you wondering in the end...whether he will ever find her or will he walk down the matrimonial aisle...and with whom? Please see this if you definitely want for your brain to be turned out!! :-)
Stefan P

Finally I got the chance to see the movie that Wicker Park is a remake of. It tells one of the best love stories ever and I was very impressed by Wicker Park. The script to L' Appartement is amazing, and Gilles Mimouni should ofcourse have all the credits for this, but Wicker… More
Finally I got the chance to see the movie that Wicker Park is a remake of. It tells one of the best love stories ever and I was very impressed by Wicker Park. The script to L' Appartement is amazing, and Gilles Mimouni should ofcourse have all the credits for this, but Wicker Park is better executed. At least I think so, it's hard to know what the effects are when you watch two almost identical films. Maybe I would have liked L' Appartement better if I had seen it first. Needless to say, I know, but Vincent Cassel and Monica Bellucci pulls these rolls off flawlessly. For me, this is a fantastic movie, that has an even better remake.