3408. Le Divorce (2003)

Starring: Kate Hudson, Naomi Watts, Leslie Caron

Director: James Ivory

Running Time: 117 mins

Le Divorce is an American film about a woman who visits her sister in France, as the pair of them begin to experience love in Paris, which clashes with the customs they’ve come to expect.

There’s no other way of putting it. This is a really bad movie. A painfully generic romantic comedy that completely oversells its own story, Le Divorce fails to deliver anything in the form of interesting cultural depth, emotional and romantic storytelling, or even the slightest semblance of decent comedy.

I was bored out of my mind from start to finish with this movie, and that’s despite the strength of some of its leading stars, including Kate Hudson, Naomi Watts and even Glenn Close in a supporting role. The screenplay here is just so poor that the actors have almost nothing to offer, instead lumbered with a painfully thin and dull story for almost two hours.

It would be okay if this film were a slightly silly, fluffy throwaway rom-com more interested in delivering laughs than anything else. However, in its attempts to be sleek and ‘sexy’ in a Parisian way, the film ends up taking itself way too seriously for its own good, ultimately coming across like some kind of Hallmark movie rather than a proper Hollywood rom-com.

While Le Divorce is an immensely forgettable film, I’m pretty sure that I didn’t laugh once through the movie. In fact, I don’t think I was even close to laughing at any point, because it’s just not funny in the slightest.

The biggest issue, however, is the fact that the movie completely underdelivers on what’s meant to be its big, unique selling point. Following the story of two women falling in love in Paris, the film seems to set out to deal with cultural differences and the ways in which romance is dealt with in France and the USA.

Having finished the film, I can’t exactly recall having learned anything about that, as the film played out like any generic romantic drama with very little in the way of insightful or interesting cultural commentary. There are all the Parisian tropes and stereotypes you’ll expect, presumably to satisfy the audience, but there’s nothing particularly captivating or even worthwhile about the film’s setting or thematic focus.

In short, there really is little saving grace for Le Divorce. A painfully poor affair with no semblance of comedy, romance or captivating drama, the film fails to tell an engaging story thanks to a dull screenplay, and poor characters that give a talented cast very little to do. So, that’s why I’m giving Le Divorce a 4.0 overall.