Frequently Bought Together
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details
|
Reviews
DVD Description
Paul and Agnes have been going out for quite some time, and Agnes is shocked to learn that Paul would rather live with 2 roommates on campus than move in with her. Each year the French government filters out students who are potential candidates for high ranking government positions. They are shipped off to schools known as Grande Ecoles, where they are trained to become the country's future leaders. It is here that Paul meets his roommate, Louis-Arnault. Paul is strangely attracted to Louis-Arnault without realising so himself. Upon seeing this, Agnes becomes jealous and proposes a bet: whoever gets Louis-Arnault into bed first wins. If Agnes emerges victorious, Paul may no longer explore his homoerotic yearnings. If Paul nabs the booty, Agnes will simply walk away.
Grande Ecole is a powerful, sexually explicit drama that explores one man’s sexuality as he journeys into the unknown.
Product Description
Paul and Agnes have been dating for quite some time, and Agnes is shocked to learn that Paul would rather live with 2 roommates on campus than move in with her. Each year the French government filters out students who are potential candidates for high ranking government positions. They are shipped off to schools known as Grande Ecoles, where they are trained to become the country's future leaders. It is here that Paul meets his roommate, Louis-Arnault. Paul is strangely attracted to Louis-Arnault without realising so himself. Upon seeing this, Agnes becomes jealous and proposes a bet: whoever gets Louis-Arnault into bed first wins. If Agnes emerges victorious, Paul may no longer explore his homoerotic yearnings. If Paul nabs the booty, Agnes will simply walk away. Bourgeois titillation and sexual experimentation brim beneath the surface of one of France's most revered educational institutions.
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Well directed and produced film. The plot is a little confusing - not only the dynamics of bisexuality but the rather contorted plot Paul and his girlfriend have to Paul's attraction to his room-mate and her "testing" of their own relationship. Even at the end with their last scene I was confused as to exactly what their relatisonhip was all about. Paul's relationship with Mecir is at times touching and beautiful, at other times it is annoying - and again the last scenes on this are a bit confusing and unsatisfactory. You empathise and sympathise with Mecir a lot and wish Paul would just get himself sorted and stop messing about! This again is where the whole subplot about Paul and his girlfriend and their "peculiar" relationship gets annoying. The implications for the future at the end of the film are also unclear. Is this a happy ending - will it be a happy ending for anyone? The race and class issues are clearly there throughout the film but there is not the strong confirmation that love conquers all that I think we want in this sort of film. Saying all that the actors are physically attractive (if not their personalities) and the film is very well constructed. I enjoyed it but was left frustrated that it seemed to be another film that doesn't have the courage to go the extra mile and be affirmative with strong characters who overcome the legacy of their upbringing and society.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This is a fine little film that is full of layered complexity, plausible characters, credible social commentary and talented and attractive characters. Director Robert Salis, while lacing the story through with powerful eroticism, keeps the overall feel very cool. There is more tension than emotion; something not that unusual in French films. The principal characters on offer in the story--Paul (the provincial bourgeois business student), Agnes (the urban activist and Paul's girlfriend), Mecir (the working class French Arab who seduces Paul) and Louis-Arnault (Paul's aristocratic roommate and object of his burgeoning sexual interest)--form a turbulent but fascinating network of relationships.
The film is visually beautiful, largely because the actors are all handsome/beautiful and their physical charms are fully displayed throughout. DON"T READ IF YOU HAVEN"T SEEN THE FILM YET. The conclusion is more true to life than it is satisfying. The viewer's natural desire to see a definitive outcome for Paul is not fulfilled. The character of Mecir, arguably the most sympathetic and meritorious in the story, is not rewarded for his directness and honesty, but at least there is hope that his positive approach to life will carry him through. Louis-Arnault, the most self-aware and most (passive) aggressive player in the story, takes to risks to his preordained life as one of the rich and powerful.
"Grande Ecole" would never have been made in Hollywood, and not just because of the uniquely French context of the elite business school. There are just too many subjects that popular American cinema will not risk taking on--elitism/classism, racism, bisexuality, etc. More's the pity because they are all basic to most societies, including U.S.
The film is visually beautiful, largely because the actors are all handsome/beautiful and their physical charms are fully displayed throughout. DON"T READ IF YOU HAVEN"T SEEN THE FILM YET. The conclusion is more true to life than it is satisfying. The viewer's natural desire to see a definitive outcome for Paul is not fulfilled. The character of Mecir, arguably the most sympathetic and meritorious in the story, is not rewarded for his directness and honesty, but at least there is hope that his positive approach to life will carry him through. Louis-Arnault, the most self-aware and most (passive) aggressive player in the story, takes to risks to his preordained life as one of the rich and powerful.
"Grande Ecole" would never have been made in Hollywood, and not just because of the uniquely French context of the elite business school. There are just too many subjects that popular American cinema will not risk taking on--elitism/classism, racism, bisexuality, etc. More's the pity because they are all basic to most societies, including U.S.
34 of 43 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This film is the wrong way round. The main plot should have been the subplot and vice versa. The story of a french-arab falling in love with a white, repressed frenchman would have been much more interesting than the silly melodrama that actually dominates the film (think Cruel Intentions in French).
Mecir is played by the French-Arab actor Salim Kechiouche (hope I spelled that right!). I never would have imagined from his earlier roles in 'a toute vitesse' and 'les amants criminal' that he would graduate to such surprising roles (although he is ageing rather badly- it must be the cigarettes).
This is not a bad film, but it could have been much better.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
no sex
More of a psychologic drama then expected but had some interesting points. I didn't really think the description of the movie gives the right impression. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Mr Me
standard
nice,but I like my guys hairy and this just didn't cut it. The plot was messy and a little confusing and the men are alittle young for me. overall 6/10.
Published 8 months ago by tim walsh
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
