davikubrick Pialat's underrated masterpiece, "Loulou" is a incredible impressive film, mostly because it can explore so many themes, and the way Pialat succeeded to tell this story about a confused "love". Before he made another masterpiece, "À nos amours" (1983), he made this, which every thing sounds and feels real, therefore his character never fell superficial. Nelly (Isabelle Huppert) is emotionally trapped between the simple minded Loulou (Gérard Depardieu) and her aggressive and manipulative husband André (Guy Marchand). "Loulou" is about the freedom that Nelly is looking for, and she believes that this freedom is in her new love affair, Loulou, but yet she is still confused to live with a unemployed man or go back to her boring life. The coldness and detachment that Pialat uses never seems or fell exaggerated, but yet it is still possible to relate and care for these characters. In the end, we have a powerful film about the search for freedom and love, who says more with it's characters actions than with their words. A remarkable masterwork.

rosscbeauregard This is the pathetic story of a woman who leaves her well-off and educated husband for Loulou (Gerard Depardieu), an unemployed ex-con. The storyline doesn't deviate much from this premise outside of a few interesting anecdotes here and there, and the rest of the film is spent on depicting the interactions between the characters.So why does this simple film deserve eight stars? In my opinion, it's because Pialat has focused his attention on a single element that dominates all aspects of its development: realism. Characters depicted are paradoxical and confused, just as many people are when it comes to love and relationships. There is no soundtrack to distract the viewer. Perhaps most interesting of all is the way the film is written and acted; every line seems spontaneous, not scripted and polished. Because of this, the film really succeeds in the impression that you really are looking through a window into people's lives. It's all great cinema; the techniques used in this film really should be used more frequently.Make no mistake, though: this is an actor's film. All three of the leads are equally brilliant. We can feel the raw emotion when one of them make a sudden outburst, though we may not always understand their motivations. This movie certainly would not have been the same without them.I recommend this film to anyone who enjoys art-house cinema.

Michael Neumann Bored, restless housewife Isabelle Huppert leaves her brutish husband for an overage juvenile delinquent, played by Gerard Depardieu in one of the roles that made him an unlikely international sex symbol. The film is an uninhibited look at the seamier side of romantic Paris, but may be altogether too dark for its own good, and not only in terms of lighting: the script itself is often unforgivably vague. A talented cast gives the largely improvised non-story an almost documentary feel, but with no sympathetic characters (and with a distracting lack of motivation) the film rambles on interminably in no particular direction. In the end it amounts to little more than just another exercise in urban spiritual malaise, complete with stock footage of the cuckold husband blowing a lonely late-night saxophone in his empty apartment, with the TV flickering silently in the background. Not even the most opaque European art-house mood piece can support that kind of cliché.

wvisser-leusden 'Loulou' delights in the same way an expensive, high quality French wine does. It leaves you with a very fine aftertaste.'Loulou's theme isn't new. The film doesn't carry an original plot either. Its colored picturing shows fine, but not extraordinary. Its setting is serious. Its elegant styling never and nowhere puts any weight on your mind.Whatever one further may say about 'Loulou', it's beyond doubt that this very French film stands out for its excellent acting. The three leads convincingly reflect all numerous doubts and tenses sparkling between them, making the plot alive. Their acting fully invites you to participate, to make friends.For those around at the time, 'Loulou' also provides an extra bonus: its perfectly captured mood of 1980.