4 Adventures of Reinette and Mirabelle

Eric Rohmer's slight but sweet 1987 comedy centers on two young women—self-assured rural lass Reinette (Joëlle Miquel) and sophisticated, easygoing city gal Mirabelle (Jessica Forde)—who meet by chance in the country and become roommates after Mirabelle offers to share her Paris apartment so that aspiring painter Reinette can study art. As the title suggests, the story consists of four separate episodes that play more like a series of sketches than a feature film. Rohmer shot this on 16mm during a break from making Summer (one of his greatest films), with the two unknown actresses largely improvising the dialogue around situations (dealing with a rude waiter or panhandlers on the street) in which their different approaches to life are contrasted and debated—especially debated, since Rohmer's films are mainly about talk, although behind the discussions of morality and philosophy lie revelations about character and personality. Compared to the Comedies and Proverbs series that Rohmer was filming at the time, this is more of a comic lark with a lighthearted air, but that only helps underscore its carefree unassuming charm. Extras include an interview with Forde. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)