A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later (1986)

You won't be disappointed!

Excellent adaptation.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later (French: Un homme et une femme, 20 ans déjà; literally A Man and a Woman, 20 Years Already) (1986) Director: Claude Lelouch Watched: 6/29/18 Rating: 5/10 Released 20 years later With same leading duo, Takes place 20 years later, We see what has changed. Ah, but we never asked to see! We liked the ending. Might be fine as stand alone, But as sequel to Superb and eloquent film That already had A fitting hopeful ending, This fares quite badly, Appearing contrived and forced- Trying to do what? To make something from nothing. Longer than the first, Less story yet more talking; Score pales in contrast, Not to mention recycled. Flashbacks to first film, Compare contrast montages. Ah, so what has changed? Man now retired from racing, Though still does for fun; Happily engaged to Girl, A very young one- Whose older sister is with Man's grown son Antoine. Woman now film producer, Married then divorced; Woman's grown daughter Françoise Tries to dress like her, An actress that works with her. Charming reunion, Affectingly bittersweet. Here things start downhill. Woman called Man- but why now? Wants to make a film, About their great love story- The best of their lives, "The one we never started." Wants his permission. He says no, but she insists. Confounding scenes show Woman's Daughter playing her. Actor playing Man Of course becomes her lover. Ah, so they relive Then watch what fate denied them. Which of course leads to A romantic overnight. Ah, this changes things. An opportune news story, Becomes replacement: Escaped serial killer Murders wife, child, Then his doctor and his wife. Woman nixes her Attempt to reproduce her Love story with Man. A little to close to home? As she begins the New serial killer film- Daughter and lover Still playing the leading roles, Man returns to Girl, Who has learned of the affair. Ah, things get weirder. During desert car rally She wants to go home. "It's the last favor I'll ask." When alone with Man, Slashes tires, cuts wires, Pours out all water. Ah, the naive young in love. Sadly, they are saved, Girl's suicide mission fails. Man goes to Woman, For happy ending at last! Reader confused yet? Was as confusing to watch. Plot aside, what's wrong? Poor editing makes chaos. Inept transitions, What was film and what was real? What was filming film And what was meant to be real? The last five minutes Redeemed the film a little- Little dialogue, Exquisite camera work, Subtly meaningful. Ah, A Man and a Woman: 20 Years is Still Too Soon. Choka (long poem) is an epic storytelling form of poetry from the Waka period, an unrhymed poem with the 5-7-5-7-5-7-5-7...7 syllable format (any odd number line length with alternating five and seven syllable lines that ends with an extra seven syllable line). #Choka #PoemReview #Sequel

Sequels to films that made an impact when they first came out are usually a let down. If we enjoyed the original, our perception on the update will probably not be as kind as when we discovered a particular movie for the first time, although there can be exceptions.That seems to be the case with this film which we never saw when it was released. Claude Lelouch surprised the world with a story that was fresh, had two of the brightest stars of that era, and had a wonderful music score by Francis Lay. Unfortunately, for this second view at the same characters twenty years later, there are no surprises, other than the reunion of Anne and Jean-Louis as they looked twenty years later.Anne and Jean-Louis who loved each other passionately, now are seen as middle aged individuals that are reunited after their break up, which by the way, it's never made clear why it happened, or how their passion fizzled after what one thought would be a match made in heaven. Anne, a film producer, is going through a bad period in her career. She feels the love story she experienced with Jean-Louis merits to be brought to the screen. For that purpose, she contacts him. Jean-Louis, now involved in a relationship with a younger woman, is skeptical of what Ann wants to do.Mr. Lelouch introduces another element. Anne, being a producer, is supervising a war epic, as the film starts. The reviews are terrible. Then, she embarks in the making of another drama. The director shows the way movies are done as most of the characters lives revolve around the different sets of films in production. It is a distracting theme that adds nothing to what one thought would be the only reason for the remake of "Une homme et une femme" in the first place.One thing did not change. Anouk Aimee shows in her mature ravishing beauty, as she lights up the screen whenever she appears. Jean-Louis Trintingnant does not fare as well. He is more of an enigma; we never warm up to him. The film disappoints because one feels manipulated by the director who brings us along with the promise of watching a relationship that went sour, fix whatever problems that got them apart, in doing so, Mr. Lelouch wastes about forty minutes of celluloid before showing the lovers together at long last!

If you saw "Un Homme et un Femme" and loved it, do yourself a favor and don't watch this one.I believe Lelouch needed a few extra bucks because this film ruins the story of the first. Did we need to know what happened to Anne and Jean-Louis 20 minutes after the first movie is over? Not really.And even if you consider this film alone, its still a very boring flick. And pointless. The story makes too many detours with their every day life: what they do now, how they evolved, and constantly needs the support of the first film to make a little sense. At the end of it, one is left with a bitter aftertaste of having betrayed the beautiful first story. Second parts are seldom good, and this movie proves it perfectly.

The movie begins badly, with some racing scenes that go on for so long you may start thinking you're watching a James Bond flick. Then it wastes some more time by following the characters in their everyday activities, which are of little interest. But when the couple from "A Man And A Woman' is finally reunited, Lelouch shows that he still hasn't lost his touch when it comes to quiet dialogue scenes, in which expressions speak as loudly as words. And the idea of filming a movie ABOUT the story we saw in the first movie makes for an intriguing re-examination of the original from an unusual perspective - the perspective of the fictional character who starred in it. But Lelouch still can't stay concentrated on the things that really matter, and even when he later introduces a new, completely unexpected story thread (the "adventure" in the desert), he keeps intercutting it with another film-within-a-film, which is boring and pointless. The final impression is that of a film with many good things in it, but also a whole lot of flaws. (**1/2)