French Kiss Review

French Kiss
Cute-as-a-button, neurotic Kate (Ryan), is unable to fly to romantic Paris with her intended, Charlie (Hutton), due to a pronounced fear of flying. But when Charlie's Parisian jaunt lands him in the arms of the gorgeous Juliette (Susan Ambeh), Kate bundles up her anxieties and takes flight to the city of the baguette. Along the way she hooks up with French con man Luc (a you-can-smell-the garlic-from-here turn from Kline), and embarks on a journey to win her man, inevitably getting confused as t

by Bob McCabe |
Published on
Release Date:

03 Nov 1995

Running Time:

109 minutes

Certificate:

12

Original Title:

French Kiss

Still smarting from the box office pounding taken by his western epic Wyatt Earp, director Kasdan decided to give the romantic comedy field another crack. Considering the last screen couple Kasdan engineered was the half-a-billion-dollar-earning Costner-Houston line-up of The Bodyguard, it makes sense. The pairing here may be a more winning combination, but the off-balance nature of the film shows that Kasdan still hasn't got the grip back on his undeniable talent.

Unusually directing from someone else's script, Kasdan's movie is often perfunctory in style, relying on the locale to do most of the work. Similarly, one can't help but feel that co-producer Ryan is cruising through this one too. All her usual tricks are on display, but her kookiness is really beginning to wear thin. Kline, however, is on top form, milking his role - and his accent - for all it's worth. Still, as good as he is (in a role reportedly earmarked for Gerard Depardieu), you can't help wondering when his French con man will reveal his ultimate con - that he's not French.

This by no means offers top quality work from any of its principles, but, like the city it so firmly bases itself in, a certain amount of charm still manages to squeeze through.
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