...And They Lived Happily Ever After (2004)

Is the love compatible with coupledom? And what of freedom and fidelity? These are some of the questions facing two married men.

Director:

Yvan Attal

Writer:

Yvan Attal

Stars:

Johnny Depp, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Sébastien Vidal

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Depp	...	L'inconnu
Charlotte Gainsbourg	...	Gabrielle
Sébastien Vidal	...	Thibault
Yvan Attal	...	Vincent
Chloé Combret	...	Chloé
Christiane Oui-Oui	...	La femme de chambre
Alain Cohen	...	Fred
Carolina Gynning	...	Zoé
Alain Chabat	...	Georges
Ben Attal	...	Joseph
Emmanuelle Seigner	...	Nathalie
Kitu Gidwani	...	Mme Gibson
Sujay Sood	...	M. Gibson
Ruben Marx	...	Antoine
Jérôme Bertin	...	Le client du garage

Storyline

What makes a marriage? Georges and Natalie argue and shout constantly; Fred, a bachelor playboy approaching 50, sleeps with many women, loving them all, living with none. Vincent, nearing 40, best friend of Georges and Fred, is married to Gabrielle and they have a son. He keeps his feelings to himself. He and Gabrielle are playful and passionate with each other, then bored and detached. Is Vincent holding back, and if so, why? A colleague accuses him of believing in romantic fairy tales. Gabrielle imagines them separated. Are the basics of life women working and men chasing skirts? Is marriage the alternative to possibilities?

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Plot Keywords:

hot | sex scene | sexy | marriage | love | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Music

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Official Sites:

Kino International Pathé Distribution [France]

Country:

France

Language:

Italian French English

Release Date:

25 August 2004 (France)

Also Known As:

Happily Ever After

Filming Locations:

Marrakech, Morocco

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$2,226,107 (France), 27 August 2004

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,695, 10 April 2005, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$252,341, 9 October 2005

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hirsch, Pathé Renn Productions, TF1 Films Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Charlotte Gainsbourg and Yvan Attal play parents to their real-life son Ben Attal.

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Quotes

Georges: [subtitled version] Stop Yelling! And stop boxing, people will think I beat you!

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Connections

References Mutiny on the Bounty (1962)

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Soundtracks

No Surprises
Written by Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Colin Greenwood, Ed O'Brien and Phil Selway
Performed by Radiohead

User Reviews

Interesting characters - but no substance

After watching the very enjoyable 'My wife is an actress' I had high hopes for 'Happily ever after', alas, the experience was disappointing. Attal started by creating interesting, complex, and even likable characters but was not able to shed any light on his premise, that is 'does or can monogamy work and if how' and cops out in the end with a nonsensical elevator ride into the sky with Gabrielle and l'inconnu Johnny Depp inside. Attal was able to set up its premise nicely during the first half of the movie, then, like feeling himself that he actually has nothing to say really, tried to save the day with whimsical 'musical' numbers, mostly terrible sentimental songs to terrible sentimental montages. He might have tried to make ironical statements with that but it comes over as if he's trying to appeal to the masses and feed them some 'Amalie' moments. The film presents itself very energetic from the beginning, with excellent cinematography and lighting, though a bit too fast cut. All female roles - with the exceptions of Attals real world wife Charlotte Gainsbourg seem to be afterthoughts as he himself admits in an interview and it shows. While they could have added some insight into the 'premise' they haven't been asked to do so by the writer/director.