Young & Beautiful (2013)

Original Title

Jeune et Jolie

Genre

Drama

Director

François Ozon

Country

France

Cast

Marine Vacth, Géraldine Pailhas, Frédéric Pierrot, Charlotte Rampling, Jonah Leysen, Fantin Ravat, Nathalie Richard, Djedje Apali, Lucas Prisor, Laurent Delbecque, Jeanne Ruff

Storyline

After losing her virginity, Isabelle (Marine Vacth) takes up a secret life as a call girl, meeting her clients for hotel-room trysts. Throughout, she remains curiously aloof, showing little interest in the encounters themselves or the money she makes.

Opinion

"Once a whore, always a whore", says one of the men to Isabelle. No other quote could have summarized the film in a better way.

Young & Beautiful is a different kind of coming-of-age story, that had the potential to become something truly interesting, but unfortunately it's shallow and doesn't go beyond its title. 

François Ozon's intentions are not clear at all, nor clear is the motivation of the main character. As the movie goes on, the only clear thing is that the filmmaker is not interested in lessons, or psychological insights, as the audience would expect.

However, the photography manages to capture the beautiful shooting locations, and Marine Vacth delivers a great performance as Isabelle, but it's really nothing compared to the performance by Adele Exarchopoulos in "Blue Is the Warmest Colour".