Film Scouts Reviews: Vie rêvée des anges, La

"La Vie rêvée des anges (The Dreamlife of Angels)"

by David Sterritt

If it were attached to an American production, a title like "The Dream Life of Angels" might sound like a Sunday-night television series or maybe an "X-Files" episode. There's little ethereal or New Age-y about these angels, though--they're a pair of young women on the loose in a medium-sized French city, living from hand to mouth (they meet during a brief stint with an industrial sewing company) while chasing guys, schmoozing their way into rock concerts, and trying to have as much fun as they can on the budgets of working-class people with highly uncertain futures. Complicating their story is Marie's volatile temper, which grows especially furious when her rich-kid boyfriend mistreats her, and Isabelle's poignant relationship with a comatose girl she visits in the hospital even though they've never really met. The story is slender, but the acting is marvelously energetic, and director Erick Zonca gives it a boost with a cinema-verite style that keeps things engaging even when not much is happening. In all, an impressive showing by all concerned.

Back to 1998 Cannes Film Festival Reviews

Back to 1998 Toronto Film Festival Reviews

Back to La Vie rêvée des anges

Back to the Press Room

Suggestions? Comments? Fill out our Feedback Form.