Mick LaSalle

“There is no one way of seeing. Nor is there a right way of seeing. Yet simply to accept the notion that…

— Mick LaSalle

“For all of [Fanny] Ardant’s ability to depict a range of emotion, I most associate her with joy. Not necessarily the depiction…

— Mick LaSalle

“THIS IS A BOOK ABOUT FRENCH CINEMA, specifically the women of today’s French cinema—a subject as vital as life and as irresistible…

— Mick LaSalle

“FRENCH CINEMA’S PORTRAITS of the young woman on her own constitute a strong and enriching strain in recent decades. Some of these…

— Mick LaSalle

“Drama and comedy are the polite genres, founded on collectively agreed-upon ideas, perceptions and truths. But life, as subjectively experienced, is not…

— Mick LaSalle

“THE NATURE OF FRENCH STARDOM (beginning early, staying late) makes it possible for a woman to grow up on screen. Marceau has…

— Mick LaSalle

“The slow blossoming of a notable career is sometimes a matter of a talent finding its way. Sometimes it’s a matter of…

— Mick LaSalle

“No longer stereotypes, these screen women had become complicated. This combination of sensuality, independence and playfulness, made them fascinating to watch and…

— Mick LaSalle

“...the best thing an individual movie lover can do is have fun. No great movement can happen in popular art without pure…

— Mick LaSalle

Before the code, women on screen took lovers, had babies out of wedlock, got rid of cheating husbands, enjoyed their sexuality, held…

— Mick LaSalle

To watch THE WAITING ROOM is to wish it would never end. This is human drama at its most intense and universal.…

— Mick LaSalle

Bill Maher does something amazing in Religulous. He makes Michael Moore look incredibly likable in comparison.

— Mick LaSalle

“WHEN I INTERVIEWED ISABELLE HUPPERT, I mentioned in passing that she has the strongest body of work of any actress in the…

— Mick LaSalle

To see the films coming out of France is to break into a vast treasure and become liberated...

— Mick LaSalle

“I feel Italian, but I also feel French,” she said. “Italy is deeper. France is strong, but it’s after.” Actually, one of…

— Mick LaSalle

“SOME GREAT ACTORS are like musicians who just happen to be brilliant at their instrument. They are, in every other way, perfectly…

— Mick LaSalle

“THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN provided by French cinema don’t need to be exaggerated. The number of films either starring or dealing primarily…

— Mick LaSalle

“SOME OF THE WOMEN YOU WILL MEET on these pages, you will already know. Some you’ll know by name, and others, including…

— Mick LaSalle

Outlandish lyrics sung by smiling people in perfect harmony. Has that edge of surprise...a little nuts and really funny.

— Mick LaSalle

“In 2003, Meryl Streep won a career achievement César Award, the French equivalent of an Oscar. Streep’s words (my translation) acknowledged the…

— Mick LaSalle

If the first ‘Hangover’ movie were this awful, there never would have been a Part Two. This is a joyless, unfunny mix…

— Mick LaSalle

“It’s not uncommon for distinguished French actresses to make their first films while still in their teens. Isabelle Adjani, Isabelle Carré, Charlotte…

— Mick LaSalle

Guy Ritchie is the worst screenwriter in the world, but, to be fair, he is not the worst director. He is only…

— Mick LaSalle

“FRENCH CINEMA IS SO RICH in opportunities for actresses of talent that a career needn’t build quickly, with a few star-making turns.…

— Mick LaSalle

“France has the largest, most lucrative cinema in Europe, making it the second most successful cinema in the Western world (a distant…

— Mick LaSalle