Not Here to Be Loved (Je Ne Suis Pas La Pour Etre Aime) (2005)
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100% of critics liked it
(6 reviews) -
47% want to see it
(600 ratings)
A weary "hussier de justice" whose job it is to deliver the paperwork preceding eviction and seizure of property forges a warm but tenuous relationship with a doubtful bride-to-be in director Stephane Brize's melancholy slice of life drama. Jean-Claude is a dreary soul who inherited… More A weary "hussier de justice" whose job it is to deliver the paperwork preceding eviction and seizure of property forges a warm but tenuous relationship with a doubtful bride-to-be in director Stephane Brize's melancholy slice of life drama. Jean-Claude is a dreary soul who inherited the thankless family business from his prickly, widowed father. Every Sunday the devoted son dutifully visits his elderly father in the nearby rest home, where the old man passes his time by heckling his put upon caretakers, and one day Jean-Claude notices a dance studio directly across from his drab office. Hoping that a tango lesson will provide the required jolt needed to shake him free of his midlife funk, the depressive Jean-Claude enrolls in a class only to find that one of his fellow students is a young woman for whom his mother once babysat. The bride-to-be of a teacher who has taken time out of the classroom to finish his ambitious first novel, the young woman is taking tango lessons in order to be properly prepared for her impending wedding. As a friendly bond develops between the pair over the course of the lessons, it soon becomes obvious that both are missing a crucial element of happiness in their lives. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Directed By
- Stéphane Brizé
- Written By
- Stéphane Brizé, Juliette Sales
- Genres
- Drama, Romance, Comedy
Critic Reviews
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Wally Hammond, Time Out
A very impressive debut and one of the best French films of the year.
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Anton Bitel, Eye for Film
In keeping with the film they accompany, the extras presented here are modest yet satisfying.
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Anthony Quinn, Independent
The only film worth seeing this week is Not Here To Be Loved, a modest French comedy that has more expressive subtlety and romance in it than Soderbergh and co will ever manage, even unto Ocean's Umpteen.
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Anton Bitel, Film4
The small scale of this melancholic romantic comedy is offset by its big themes. Bleak, well observed and dryly funny.
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Tom Dawson, BBC
Although the prevailing mood is melancholic, there's also a welcome vein of dry humour at work here
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