COMIC DRAMA; 1hr 38min (French with subtitles)
STARRING: Laure Calamy, Vincent Elbaz
Conjugal rites: Elbaz and Calamy
Her osteopath unlocks more kinks than she realises she has when he casually asks dentist Iris Beaulieu (My Donkey, My Lover & I ’s Calamy) how things are going with her husband (Elbaz as Stéphane), and it hits her that, bedroom-wise, “They’re not.” Merde! The Beaulieus’ covetable apartment, their two whip-smart daughters and Stéphane’s consuming work ethic are drops in a bucket of desire that Iris had forgotten the existence of for years. Enter a dating app for straying marrieds, where all sorts of prospects are lining up.
Iris’s embracing of her inner man-eater involves a lot of swiping and lying that, with a less loveable actress running the show, could come off as purely selfish and deceitful. Calamy, on the other hand, makes adultery look almost adorable, with her smile that could melt a wall of ice, her luscious curves and her excellent French hair.
That smile has ample chance to work its magic, since neither director Caroline Vignal — re-teaming with Calamy post Donkey — nor her proficient cast is taking these extra-marital adventures too seriously. Even when a wound-up Iris becomes a preachy libertine and sometime fantasist while tensions mount at home, there’s no real risk that this rosy, bouncy apple will fall too far from its protective tree. Iris will lose her way only to discover a new and improved way back to where she belongs, while proving to audiences all over again what a premium honeypot La Calamy can be.
