The movie that Josée Dayan has made about the Duras-Andréa affair is not a scandal. Unfortunately, its not much of anything but a solemn joke. [14 April 2003, p.88]
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A limp-to-wilted film version of Duras' 16-year-long love affair with a young man who became her secretary and literary executor.
Washington Post by Desson Thomson
There is one reason, and one reason alone, to watch Cet Amour-La. It is Jeanne Moreau.
New York Daily News by Elizabeth Weitzman
Dayan's weakly structured biopic Cet Amour-là is, to be kind, less than inspired. But as a showcase for legendary French actress Jeanne Moreau, it's a tour de force.
Pretentious but gorgeously photographed.
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
You can forget about veracity, since this gauzy and sometimes dopey romanticization can't be trusted.
Village Voice by Michael Atkinson
May worship heedlessly at Duras's memory, but it's a testament to Moreau alone.
Moreau is magnetic as the wise-but-neurotic scribe, though the same can't be said of Demarigny, whose timid portrayal of a reverent fanboy sucks the energy out of most of his scenes. Dayan's direction is even more problematic.
The New Republic by Stanley Kauffmann
Moreau's face is the base and the beauty of the film.
The screenplay also fails to put the unconventional relationship into context. It never lets on that Andrea helped Duras produce some of her best work, including the autobiographical "The Lovers."