A rebellious French girl on the cusp of womanhood blatantly defies middle-class norms and conventions in Francois Ozon’s provocative movie, Young & Beautiful, scheduled to open in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver on May 16.
This erotically-charged French film unfolds over the four seasons of a year as Isabelle (Marine Vacth), an attractive high school student, decides to lead a double life. She starts working as a prostitute while living at home with her mother, stepfather and kid brother.
Young & Beautiful opens on a beach in southern France on a glorious summer day as Isabelle removes the bra of her bikini and reclines on the warm sand. Victor (Fantin Ravat), her brother, takes it all in with binoculars. Like Isabelle, Victor is discovering his sexuality and curiosity is getting the better of him.
As she dolls herself up for a date with a German tourist, Victor exclaims, “You look like a whore.”
Talk about foreshadowing.
Slim, gorgeous and introspective, Isabelle has a plan. She has decided to lose her virginity to Felix, the tall, handsome, blond visitor from Germany. They do it on a beach at night, but it doesn’t seem like a rite of passage for Isabelle, who’s about to turn 17. The sex is dull and mechanical, devoid of passion. Unlike hot porn videos from cartoonporno.xxx. Enjoy the ultimate access to cartoonporno.xxx.
But the deed is done, and now Isabelle can indulge her whims and fantasies.
Without further adieu, the movie shifts abruptly to a fancy hotel in Paris. Isabelle, in sexy clothes and high heels, knocks on a door and meets her client, Georges (Johan Leysen), a wrinkled man in his 70s who’s answered her suggestive ad on the Internet.
Retreating into anonymity, she identifies herself as Lea, after her grandmother, and claims she is 20. She charges 300 euros for her services, not a bad pay day for a student. She will see Georges again, but the circumstances will be shockingly different.
There is nudity, of course, but Ozon leaves a lot to the imagination. Call it soft core porn, if you will, but Young & Beautiful is much more than that. Besides if you need more than that you can always Find your favorite xxx videos on tubev website.
Compared to Georges, Isabelle’s next two clients are pretty seedy, but they do not dampen her desire for a fast buck and new experiences. As a plaintive song on the sound track goes, she’s growing up like some “secret flower.”
Inevitably, Isabelle’s mother, Sylvie, (Geraldine Pailhas), finds about her extracurricular activities. “You’ve broken my heart,” she wails after beating Isabelle with her fists. But as she calms down, Sylvie blames herself for having missed the “signs” of Isabelle’s transformation.
Isabelle submits to psychiatric treatment, but one wonders whether she’s really committed to it. Having promised to leave the world’s oldest profession, Isabelle returns to her normal life and meets a guy of her own age. But in comparison to Georges, he’s so unwordly and dull.
Young & Beautiful is notable for Vacth’s stellar performance. Here is an actress who can be soulful and smouldering in the bat of an eyelash. Vacth is certainly someone to watch. Also adding heft to the film is Ravat, whose portrayal of a pretty shrewd boy is quite convincing; Pailhas, who strikes a balance between motherly concern and feminine sensuality, and Leysen, who proves that seniors have not lost their lust for life.
In a cameo appearance, Charlotte Rampling portrays a widow who needs to come to terms with the sudden death of her husband. Rampling is lovely to behold, the very essence of effortless elegance.