It Boy - Love in French - DVD

Content: The 38-year-old Alice (Virginie Efira) is a career woman through and through. She is completely dedicated to her job at a big fashion magazine and would be predestined for the position of editor-in-chief. But unfortunately, she is considered extremely uptight, which has so far prevented her boss from giving Alice even more responsibility. When she loses an important USB stick on a flight, which her seatmate, 19-year-old Stundet Balthazar (Pierre Niney) finds, a misunderstanding occurs that could bring Alice a decisive step closer to her dream job: because when she meets with the boy to get the USB stick back, she is observed by colleagues who spread the rumor in the office that Alice has taken a teenage lover. With her boss heavily taken with this whole new side of his employee, Alice decides to keep the truth to herself and use Balthazar to get the promotion she wants. But is it really so easy to shamelessly exploit a lovely young man without falling for his charms or feeling guilty?

After moving more along horror paths with the intense home-invasion thriller Them and the US production The Eye, director David Moreau tries his hand at a light romantic comedy with It Boy - Love in French. Moreau's staging is rather ordinary and doesn't bring anything new to the genre. Nevertheless, he manages to wrap up the old familiar in a very charming and amusing way, so that there is not a second of boredom in his romantic comedy. This is not only due to the decent narrative pace, but primarily to the two likeable main actors.

Although Alice is not exactly a prime example of a sympathetic character with her career-oriented behavior for which she uses other people and keeps them at a distance emotionally, Virginie Efira manages to give her a very engaging personality that makes it very understandable for the viewer that Alice is just not a calculated ice queen, but a woman driven by deep insecurity and loneliness who simply goes down the wrong paths to fill a personal void. At her side, Pierre Niney, known from LOL, acts as a somewhat naive but very endearing romantic who believes in the very big love that bridges even clear age gaps - and who, of course, is all the more disappointed when he finds out the truth about Alice and her feelings.

Sure, you've seen it all before, some of it maybe a little better. But that doesn't change the fact that It Boy - Love in French is simply fun, has some very enchanting moments to offer and leaves you as a lover of French romantic comedies with a smile on your face at the end. If you don't expect a revolution of the genre and just want to enjoy 90 minutes of good entertainment that definitely touches your heart, this DVD premiere can be absolutely recommended! Worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: The image of the DVD shows a satisfactory overall sharpness and pleases with a very pleasant, warm color scheme. Real weak points are just as little noticeable here, as with the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. This presents itself somewhat restrained overall. But that is actually usual for a romantic comedy, since here now times the dialogues and the music are quite clearly in the foreground. Good!

Extras: Much additional material has the DVD unfortunately not to offer. The Making of is just a 2 minute long promo spot and also the interview with leading actress Virginie Efira (approx. 8 min.) is not particularly profound. The trailer to the film and other program tips of the provider close the bonus offer then again. Something meager.

Conclusion: It Boy - Love in French is a very nice romantic comedy, which can score especially with its charming lead actors and some very amusing scenes. True, director David Moreau has not really reinvented the wheel here. But since he presents old familiar here extremely sympathetic, at times very amusing and endearing, his film is absolutely recommended for all lovers of French romantic comedies!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp