French Kiss (film)

A French kiss can refer to a style of kissing using the tongue. For other uses, see French kiss (disambiguation).

French Kiss is an 1995 American romantic comedy set primarily in France. The film was greeted less than enthusiastically by film critics but the moviegoing public made it a major financial success. A Bollywood remake titled Pyar To Hona Hi Tha starring Ajay Devgan and Kajol was made in 1998.

Plot

Kate (Meg Ryan) is a fastidious young woman who thinks she knows exactly what her future will be: marry a Toronto doctor named Charlie (Timothy Hutton) and live happily ever after as soon as he comes back from a business trip to Paris. Her plans get ruined, however, when her man runs off with a beautiful French seductress named Juliette (Susan Anbeh).

Determined to get him back, Kate overcomes her fear of flying and boards a flight for Paris. Onboard, she is seated next to a Frenchman named Luc Teyssier (Kevin Kline), a crude petty thief whom she is forced to tolerate for the next few hours of the flight. Luc hides a stolen diamond necklace and a small grapevine in her purse to get them past customs. After several mishaps in Paris, Luc finds himself forced to accompany Kate across France to try to get the necklace back, under the pretense of helping her win back Charlie. Unexpected complications occur when the two find themselves developing an unlikely attraction to one another.

Cast

• Kevin Kline - Luc Teyssier
• Meg Ryan - Kate
• Jean Reno - Jean-Paul Cardon
• Timothy Hutton - Charlie
• François Cluzet - Bob
• Susan Anbeh - Juliette

The movie's screen-writer, Adam Brooks, has a cameo appearance as the "model" passenger sitting next to Kevin Kline's character during the flight.

Production

The lead role of Luc was originally written with the expectation that it would be performed by France's most famous movie actor, Gerard Depardieu. When Depardieu was not available for the film, Kevin Kline stepped into the role. Some viewers detect an element of gentle parody of Depardieu in Kline's performance.

Music

Noted on the film's soundtrack are Paolo Conte's "Via con me", Van Morrison's "Someone Like You" and, performed by Kevin Kline in French, Charles Trenet's "La Mer", as well as Louis Armstrong's version of "La Vie en Rose". Also, The Beautiful South did a cover of Dream a Little Dream of Me; Jason Statham was an extra in the video.

Film locations

The film takes place in three locations in France: Paris, Valbonne in the Alpes-Maritimes département in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur région of southeastern France, and Cannes.

In Paris, Charlie and Juliette stay at the famous Hotel George V, Paris. It is here that Meg Ryan's character has her encounters with a supercilious concierge, played by Laurent Spielvogel, and it is in the lobby that she is robbed by a Parisian con artist played by François Cluzet.

Other scenes around Paris include numerous shots of the Eiffel Tower, driving past the Louvre Pyramid, and Meg Ryan's character using a phonebooth near the Arc de Triomphe. There are a number of street scenes shot on the Right Bank. There is a corner in the Montmartre district where rue Paul Albert and rue Feutrier meet and Kline's character throws money on the sidewalk and later Ryan's character picks it up.

The last scene in Paris is at the Gare Saint-Lazare train station where Kevin Kline's character is being chased by police inspector Jean-Paul Cardon (Jean Reno) while trying to board a train south to Cannes. One of the 'errors' in the film is that the train to Cannes does not leave from this station but rather from Gare de Lyon. (The trains from Gare Saint-Lazare go north towards Normandy.)

In the small French village of Valbonne (about 15 minutes north of Cannes) Kevin Kline's character gets into a fight with his brother in the main village square in front of the Hotel les Armoiries (a 17th century building). There are also other scenes of the town in the film.

There are scenes of a train station and the vineyards of the small hamlet of La Revelle which is part of the town of Paulhaguet in the Haute-Loire département in the Auvergne région of south central France.

In Cannes there are outside shots of the Carlton Hotel where all four main characters are staying. There are inside scenes of the lobby and one of the restaurants (the brasserie used for morning breakfasts). Scenes include the beach in front of the hotel along with the adjacent waterfront - in particular the Cartier boutique on the next corner.

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