Games of Love & Chance

The title of writer-director Abdellatif Kechiche's film comes from a 1730 stage comedy by Marivaux, which contemporary teens from the Parisian projects are preparing for a school production, and the youngsters' crushes, flirtations, and minor cruelties toward each other mirror the actions of the 18th-century characters they're playing. The main figure is Krimo, a shy, quiet, inarticulate boy who's so smitten with his blonde, ebullient neighbor Lydia—who's also the lead in the play—that he bribes the kid playing her romantic interest to drop out and hand over the part to him. But his ensuing bumbling courtship only enflames rivalries and animosities already simmering among their friends, and Lydia's inclination to play hard to get exacerbates the situation—as does Krimo's singular unsuitability for the stage. Most of Games of Love & Chance alternates between rehearsal scenes and extended conversations—which often degenerate into shouting matches—among the characters, and viewers may feel that both tend to run on too long, but overall this gritty movie seems remarkably truthful about the difficulties of adolescent life among the young French underclass. Recommended. (F. Swietek)