Dis-moi oui... (1995)
Directed by Alexandre Arcady

Film Review

Convincing, perfectly judged performances from Jean-Hugues Anglade and Julia Maraval just about rescue this film, a wishy-washy romantic drama, and prevent it from drowning in a sea of mushy sentimentality. Some will find the idea of a middle-aged man (even one as youthful looking as Anglade) and a pre-teenage girl falling in love tasteless, if not downright disturbing, but director Alexandre Arcady approaches the problematic Lolita-like relationship from a sympathetic angle and succeeds in rendering it plausible. Some weaknesses in the script prevent the characters from being as well-rounded as you might hope but the quality of the acting at least partly makes up for this. Regrettably, the film's credibility takes a sharp nosedive in its last twenty minutes when the clichés start piling up and direct the narrative towards a somewhat lame and disappointing ending. Dis-moi oui... is a very different kind of film from the one that we associate with Arcady, overblown male-dominated thrillers that are strongly influenced by their American counterparts - examples include Le Grand pardon (1982), L'Union sacrée (1989) and K (1997). Pour Sacha (1991) revealed a more sensitive and humane side to the director which has since led him to direct some more worthy and original films.

Film Synopsis

Stéphane Villiers, a thirty-something paediatrician in Bordeaux, gets more than he bargained for when he befriends a 12-year-old girl named Éva one evening.  The girl easily gains his sympathies and a temporary refuge in his apartment by telling him she ran away from home after being beaten by an abusive stepmother and her jealous stepsisters.  It is only when Stéphane recounts this incident to a friend over dinner that he realises he has been taken in by a fairy story.  In fact, Éva is a disturbed pre-adolescent who has developed a fixation on Villiers after being treated by his father for a brain condition from early childhood.  Despite the difference in their ages, Stéphane develops tender feelings for Éva and, when she succumbs to a coma, he decides to take charge of her medical treatment, against the wishes of his father.  It will be eight years before Stéphane sees Éva again, purely by chance at a hotel in Seville...