Read My Lips (Sur mes lèvres) (2002)

97% of critics liked it
(95 reviews)
80% of users liked it
(5,026 ratings)

A woman looking for love finds a man who leads her into a life of crime in this thriller. Carla (Emmanuelle Devos) is a woman in her mid-twenties who works as a secretary in a real estate office. More cute than pretty, Carla is shy by nature, and the fact that she has a hearing problem has made her… More A woman looking for love finds a man who leads her into a life of crime in this thriller. Carla (Emmanuelle Devos) is a woman in her mid-twenties who works as a secretary in a real estate office. More cute than pretty, Carla is shy by nature, and the fact that she has a hearing problem has made her all the more withdrawn. While she longs for a relationship with a man, she finds herself living vicariously through her friend Annie (Olivia Bonamy), a single parent who dates often while Carla babysits her child. Carla makes the acquaintance of Paul (Vincent Cassel), a rough-hewn small-time criminal who has just been released from prison on parole. While Carla ought to know better, she finds herself strongly attracted to Paul, and Paul responds in kind. But before long, it becomes obvious that Paul is having an influence on Carla's normally stable nature; eager to get even with a co-worker who had wronged her, Carla persuades Paul to steal one of her company's files, which makes things more than a bit difficult for Carla's rival. Carla and Paul's actions go from malicious to seriously criminal when Paul hatches a scheme to rob a nightclub owner to whom he owes money -- a scheme that involves Carla's keen skill as a lip reader. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 55 min.
Directed By: Jacques Audiard
Written By: Jacques Audiard, Tonino Benacquista
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Mystery & Suspense

In Theaters: Jul 19, 2002 Limited
On DVD: Jul 22, 2003
Studio: Magnolia Pictures

Critic Reviews

Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star
Audiard has created one of those rare, commercially released movies that trades in actual, honest-to-god surprise.
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail
Having changed into action gear, the picture never looks back, leaving two people who seemed wonderfully unique to do things that are cinematically trite.
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
It's neither as romantic nor as thrilling as it should be. But it offers plenty to ponder and chew on as its unusual relationship slowly unfolds.
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee
Read My Lips works on many levels, one being a fresh take on the 'office romance,' but a romance that evolves in a strictly nontraditional way.
Susan Stark, Detroit News
Thoughtful, provocative and entertaining.
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News
It's erotic, suspenseful and built around two surprising characters. Even better, it doesn't feel like every other thriller we've ever seen.
Nick Rogers, Suite101.com
Crawling onto the razor's edge with bare hands, Jacques Audiard's film generates daringly uncomfortable, psychologically dangerous heat rarely found in romance of any stripe. Exhilaratingly paced, cleverly suspenseful and tastefully erotic.
Jean-François Vandeuren, Panorama
Un film en constante progression démarrant sur la note d'un drame exceptionnel pour se terminer sous les traits d'un des suspenses les mieux nantis des années 2000
Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness
May be the finest thriller/romance hybrid of the new century.
Joshua Tanzer, Offoffoff
Like the Vertigo-inspired Chinese film Suzhou River, it pays homage to Hitchcock without copying, and the results are original and thrilling in their own right.
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
Click to read review
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Muito bem estruturada, a narrativa aproveita ao máximo suas várias reviravoltas para criar suspense e também para estabelecer uma forte tensão sexual entre os protagonistas.
Mark Robison, Reno Gazette-Journal
"Read My Lips" surprises by making the viewer care more about the characters than the plot.
Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine
No supplemental material on this DVD edition but, then again, it's Audiard's taut screenplay and even more effective observation of a very complex relationship that's key here.

Read all 14 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Daniel P

Superb Hitchcockian thriller with a fantastic double act in Emmanuelle Devos & Vincent Cassel, who are both excellent. The film is unbearably tense, romantic, sexy, offbeat and finally oddly beautiful. The cinematography is great, the central conceit is used to great effect (sound… More
Superb Hitchcockian thriller with a fantastic double act in Emmanuelle Devos & Vincent Cassel, who are both excellent. The film is unbearably tense, romantic, sexy, offbeat and finally oddly beautiful. The cinematography is great, the central conceit is used to great effect (sound design is particularly effective) and the direction taught. The director, Jacques Audiard, who has gone on to make the equally impressive <i>The Beat That My Heart Skipped</i>, is fast becoming a personal favorite...
Kyle S

I really loved this movie, a beautiful yet gritty romance/thriller. One of the best movies I have seen lately. Both Vincent Cassel and Emmanuelle Devos gave astounding performances. Since I have now seen all of Jacques Audiard's work, it is safe to stay that this is his… More
I really loved this movie, a beautiful yet gritty romance/thriller. One of the best movies I have seen lately. Both Vincent Cassel and Emmanuelle Devos gave astounding performances. Since I have now seen all of Jacques Audiard's work, it is safe to stay that this is his masterpiece, with "A Prophet" tailing close behind.