French Lover Review
Director: Lisa-Nina Rives
Date Created: 2025-09-26 22:07
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French Lover Review: Directed by Lisa-Nina Rives and starring Omar Sy as Abel, alongside Sara Giraudeau as Marion in the central roles, the film comes across as a glossy romantic comedy of fame, romance, and do-overs as it revolves around a very famous actor in France who falls in love with an ordinary woman and must attempt to become a better man. The film also has Alban Ivanov, Pascale Arbillot, Agnès Hurstel, Cindy Bruna, Xavier Lacaille, and a few others in supporting roles, and it runs for a bit over two hours.
French Lover Review
The premise of Netflix’s French Lover feels familiar but promising. Abel, a successful star whose fame and fortune get him embroiled with a woman on hard times who is experiencing losses at home. Abel and Marion’s life crosses paths as their ways get entangled, and they find themselves falling in love against all odds. The narrative attempts to show how Abel is steadied by Marion and provided with a feeling of responsibility as Marion is returned her confidence and ambitions by Abel.
It’s a story of transformation and love. But the way it is narrated feels long, uneven, and often frustrating. I couldn’t root for them because I was unable to see what Marion saw in Abel that made her date him. The love never has a chance to catch hold, and the film loses itself too many times in Abel’s tantrums rather than actual development.
My largest issue with the French Lover film is its leading relationship. Abel is cast as irresponsible, selfish, and immature. Although in some romantic comedies a “lovable but defective” hero will work, here he won’t. His actions tend to stray from goofy and become truly objectionable, so you can’t stand him. When a romantic movie has you loathing its hero, then you’re already skating on thin ice.
Sara Giraudeau’s Marion was cast well for quiet strength, but should not have been provided with more forceful material. She remains on stage too long as Abel’s secondary character and not enough as a standalone, goal-oriented character. The play sets up goals for her — i.e., possessing a food truck and independently living — but these scenes are eclipsed by Abel’s problems. At the end of the play, we are supposed to believe that she becomes an agent, but it comes too late.
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Another concern is pace. At 122 minutes, the film plods, particularly in the middle portion. The scenes which are supposed to create tension or romance are redundant, yet the dramatic clashes are short of the same level of intensity they need to carry. The ending ties everything up in a typical “happily ever after,” but the problem was that it didn’t feel like it had been earned. Rather than having me feel warm and satisfied, I couldn’t help but question why the filmmakers believed that the couple worked at all.
But at least the Netflix movie French Lover isn’t bereft of its own positive qualities. Omar Sy has an undeniable presence onscreen. Even when his personality is not so likeable, he has more than enough energy and charm. There also appear to be some really charming moments between them, for instance, the light-hearted montage scenes and some of the gamesy interactions between Marion and Abel. Cinematography does make Paris look romantic, and there are some flashes of humour which might have worked if aided by a stronger script.
I also enjoyed that efforts were being made to illustrate how fame could destroy relationships. The media scrutiny and the fact that Abel had no direction in his life as a youth are great ideas. These are never properly explored and instead become background noise, but not the substance of the film.
The French Lover’s biggest selling point is its cast. Omar Sy, who we all know from Lupin, puts his all into playing Abel, but the script isn’t working in his favour. Sara Giraudeau lends Marion sensuality and vulnerability, but, like Abel, is hampered by the script. They have a lopsided chemistry between them. There are days when they are beautiful to watch on screen; there are days when their love seems forced.
Pascale Arbillot and Alban Ivanov have a couple of jokes at the expense of their respective characters, but otherwise have fairly minor roles that amount to nothing. You are left ultimately disappointed that such fine actors are wasted on a play that they fail to do any justice to.
Netflix French Lover Review: Summing Up
Overall, if I had to sum up this movie in one word, that would be underwhelming. It is a formulaic film with an overly annoying protagonist that you simply cannot help rooting against, and romance that fails. If you are a fan of Omar Sy, looking forward to seeing him play another type of character, then Netflix’s French Lover is one to watch in a light mood. Otherwise, if you want to watch a film that will take you off your feet with romance, comedy, and emotional depth, then that is not this film. For me, the lack of charm and bad storytelling caused me to think so.
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