Style over content.

Like most young men of a certain era and cinematic inclination I spent alot of my formative years in undersubscribed dank arthouse cinemas watching Jean-Paul Belmondo smoking. His effortless Gallic cool and great sense of style, his easy charm and his way with the women were a template for young men on both sides of La Manche to copy and make fools of themselves in front of girls. If it hadn't had been for the sheer perfection of his co-stars there would have been no reason to take your eyes off him. Right through sixties he made one great film after another the titles of which are,if your like me, probably a list of some of your favourite moments in cinema.

So we get to 1973. What happened . Why did they get misty for the 1930's on both sides of the Atlantic. The Great Gatsby being released that year as well. So I can only presume that the thinking must have been somewhere along the lines of if they can do a soft-focus over- stylised epic drama of a rich man brought low, so can we. Who have they got? Robert Redford. An actor as famous for his physical beauty as for his acting skills. Who have we got? I know lets get Belmondo to swan around in Yves Saint Laurent and be chauffeur driven in an Hispano Suiza in soft focus. Everyone will love that. Great actor, great charisma, great suits, it's got to work. Sadly it doesn't.

There is no depth to Stavisky at all. The director has put all his faith in the Belmondo charisma but this time it doesn't shine. He's got the suits he's got the cars and he's got the girl but everything is so lifeless, especially the girl. This film is just about production values. No great story. no great acting. JUst a belief that an actors charm will carry it off.

There's a completely spurious sub-plot about Lenin. Featuring a Lenin that you only see from distance. In fact it's not even a sub-plot but merely a ruse to introduce another actress in another YSL dress and to see more cars that they hired. All we get by way of character study is seeing a supposedly rich man doing what supposedly rich men do . Driving in luxurious cars, and being extravagant. This is all very well for the production designer but it does nothing for the depth of the character. The great cast are given no depth, or coherence no real reason for being all together in this large budget movie. They don't act as they're part of something they just seem to all be there. This must have taken some doing on Mr. Resnais' part has he has several of the best actors France has ever produced. Yet with all this talent and budget one is given no reason to to feel any compassion for anbody except Charles Boyer whose old world Holywood charm is the best thing about this film.

You can't help but get the feeling Belmondo just cashed the cheque for this one, and if it matches his character it bounced.