No. 80 (2023) THE TASTING (LA DEGUSTATION). Nov. 8th.

 

Film No. 80  (2023)  November 8th.   6:30 PM  LUNA LEEDERVILLE,  Cine 5, Leederville.

 

"Your heart is fragile. Wine weakens it!" (The wise words of Jacques doctor as he deals with dizzy spells).

WINNER: Moliere Award (Ivan Calberac) Moliere de la Comedie Awards.

This sweet French Rom/Com is made to charm you into believing in fairy tales. LA DEGASTATION helps us to escape the drudgery of life and instils in us a  belief that good, lonely people with assorted "baggage" can find each other and live happily ever after. Well, we never see that far into the future but we assume they live happily ever after!

The poster sets us up, yeah? Hortense (Isabelle Carre) and Jacques (Bernard Campan) meet in his wine store. They look into each others' eyes and know there is an attraction, but can their worlds of secrets and regrets meld so that they might become one? Of course they will. This isn't a reinvention of a genre.  The best bits of DEGUSTATION are the comic moments. A combination of dry wit and slapstick gives this worn genre piece a fun lift. There is a fresh feel care of  Writer/Director Ivan Calberac. 

Ultimately DEGASTATION could do with another cut. Excellent, 85 minute films of this light, feel-good variety should be the norm. We know where light tales of the heart are headed early on. How they craft a "two hander" (LA DEGASTATION) into something memorable is the key. THE TASTING very nearly strikes that excellent chord.   8GUMS.