Hommes, femmes, mode d'emploi (1996)

Director:

Claude Lelouch

Writers:

René Bonnell (writer)
Jean-Philippe Chatrier (additional dialogue)

Release Date:

28 August 1996 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

Benoit Blanc loves living, he loves women, he loves daring. He is a famous businessman who suffers from stomach-ache...

Plot Keywords:

Helicopter | Punctuation In Title | Lourdes France | Paris France | Apostrophe In Title

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Fabrice Luchini	...	Fabio Lini
Bernard Tapie	...	Benoit Blanc
Alessandra Martines	...	Docteur Nitez
Pierre Arditi	...	Lerner
Ticky Holgado	...	Toc Toc, Loulou's Father
Ophélie Winter	...	Pretty Blonde of Crillon
Patrick Husson	...	Falsetto Singer#-#Falestto Singer (voice)
Salomé Lelouch	...	Lola Dufour (as Salomé)
Christophe Hémon	...	Loulou, boy from Train
William Leymergie	...	Dufour
Caroline Cellier	...	Madame Blanc
Gisèle Casadesus	...	Clara Blanc, Benoit's Mother
Daniel Gélin	...	The Widower
Anouk Aimée	...	The Widow
Philippe Khorsand	...	Restaurant chief

Also Known As:

Men, Women: A User's Manual

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Filming Locations:

Lourdes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France

Company:

Les Films 13

Movie Connections:

Features "Nulle part ailleurs" (1987)

A problematic look at relationships

This is a film focusing on the up and downs of the relationships between men and women. It opens with a beautiful circular aerial shot of a château. The main character is played by the disgraced former Marseilles soccer club owner, Bernard Tapie. He is Benoit Blanc, a wealthy businessman who has had many women and starts to have problems with his health. Also, the other main character, a cop, has the same health problem. The two guys meet at the doctor's and discuss their problems. One of the doctors who examines them is Blanc's beautiful former lover who he dumped, and she is now bitter and deceitful. The other characters include two young lovers who lie about their age and can't find each other again after their first meeting; Blanc's mother who marries again at the age of eighty; and two street musicians who Blanc gives help to, one of whom wails an irritating sound through most of the film. Apart from that foible, the film is watchable and has a touching scene where the two guys visit Lourdes to seek a miracle cure for their health problems. It is an interesting look at the relationships of men and women from different age groups in all walks of life.