La fille sur le pont (1999)

Director:

Patrice Leconte

Writers:

Serge Frydman (dialogue)
Serge Frydman (screenplay)

Release Date:

31 March 1999 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Plot:

It's night on a Paris bridge. A girl leans over Seine River with tears in her eyes and a violent yearning to drown her sorrows...

Plot Keywords:

Knife Thrower | Gambling | Seine River | Luck | Promiscuous Woman

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 15 nominations

Cast

Vanessa Paradis	...	Adèle
Daniel Auteuil	...	Gabor
Frédéric Pfluger	...	Contortionist
Demetre Georgalas	...	Takis
Catherine Lascault	...	Irene
Isabelle Petit-Jacques	...	Bride
Mireille Mossé	...	Miss Memory
Didier Lemoine	...	TGV Ticket Conductor
Bertie Cortez	...	Kusak
Stéphane Metzger	...	Italian Waiter
Claude Aufaure	...	Suicide Victim
Farouk Bermouga	...	TGV Waiter
Nicolas Donato	...	Mr. Loyal
Enzo Etokyo	...	Italian Megaphone
Giorgios Gatzios	...	Barker

Also Known As:

Girl on the Bridge (USA) (DVD title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexuality.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | Italian

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:18A (Ontario) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Hong Kong:IIB | New Zealand:M | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R | South Korea:18 | Germany:12 (f) | Finland:S (video rating)

Filming Locations:

Athens, Greece

Company:

Canal+

Trivia:

The opening sequence lasts for more than 7 minutes with a monologue by Vanessa Paradis. In the DVD commentary, director 'Patrice Leconte' says that a single shot was necessary using several cameras.

Goofs:

Continuity: SPOLIER: the two walking sticks disappear at the end of the film.

Soundtrack:

Corcal

Magnificent and Delightful Fable About Two Half-Souls Who Meet Each Other in a Parisian Bridge

In Paris, the needy and unlucky Adèle (Vanessa Paradis) is a complete loser, used by all the men in her life. In a Parisian bridge in the night, when the Adèle is close to commit a suicide, a knife thrower Gabor (Daniel Auteuil) invites her to be her target in his show. She accepts the invitation, and they become a great success in show business. Like to halves of a bill, when they separate, they become losers again, and realize that only together they would succeed in life. "La Fille Sur le Pont" is a magnificent and delightful fable about two half-souls who meet each other in a Parisian bridge, completing their lives with lucky and happiness. The story in some moments recalls the wonderful movies of Frank Capra, in other moments is quite erotic. The performances of Daniel Auteuil and Vanessa Paredis, showing a perfect chemistry, deserve a nomination to the Oscar, most of their dialogs are fantastic, the direction of Patrice Leconte is splendid as usual and the black& white photography is stunning. "La Fille Sur le Pont" is a movie to be revisited many times and highly indicated to fans of filmed poetry. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "A Garota da Ponte" ("The Girl of the Bridge")