I wasn't planning on writing a review of this film until I read so many negative remarks of Jean Seberg's performance. Having read about Ms. Seberg's life, I couldn't help from thinking that her character, Cecile, might have experienced some of the conflicts that Seberg encountered in real life. Unlike some other reviewers, I felt that Seberg's performance added value to a production that would have otherwise lost my interest. And, yes, I liked looking at her too, even though I always felt that her boyish haircut failed to bring out the full dimensions of her feminine beauty.The picturesque locale on the French Riviera was visually appealing, and the opulent society depicted was very stylish and glossy, even to the ostentatious point of driving huge late 50's Chryslers in France, but these attributes would not have kept me awake as the hour grew late. As much as I like Deborah Kerr, she wasn't enough to prevent me from turning away from the film, but Seberg and the intelligent, often profound words given to her by the writers maintained my curiosity. Niven's "aging playboy" character, on the other hand, was much too disagreeable and hackneyed to interest me for very long. While Cecile never abandoned the fashionable life of wealth and high social status that she had inherited, she did seriously pause to question its artificiality, shallowness, and insincerity. Unlike most of the members of the privileged class that surrounded her on all sides, she recognized the emptiness of their values and priorities. In reading about Seberg's own life, she made the very same observations of Hollywood, stating at one point, "I never knew until I came here (to Hollywood) that someone could be really nice to you for years and hate your guts." So the young woman from Marshalltown, Iowa, who had been chosen by Otto Preminger out of 18,000 hopefuls to play "Saint Joan", finally made it to the glamorous world of fame and fortune, only to meet a very tragic end at a very young age. Like Cecile, Jean entered the flashy world of the beautiful people only to find immense dissatisfaction and sorrow in the end. I couldn't help from believing that Ms. Seberg strongly identified with the inner discord of her character, which made her performance all the more powerful and meaningful to me.

Adapted from Françoise Sagan's debut novel published in 1954 when she was merely eighteen- years-old, Otto Preminger's BONJOUR TRISTESSE thrives on weaving its melodramatic tenor through the flippant precociousness of its protagonist, Cécile (Seberg), a 17-year-older gamine living with her affluent but roué father Raymond (Niven).The film starts in Paris, in her all-out glamour and allure reflected through the monochromatic lens, Cécile and Raymond appear to be the perfect father-daughter pair, no generation gap, neither is too clingy to each other, they are like-minded and incredibly compatible, thoroughly luxuriate in their bourgeois dalliances as if nothing could ever faze them.However, elicited by Juliette Gréco's terribly sensuous and lugubrious rendition of the titular theme song BONJOUR TRISTESSE, written by Georges Auric, Cécile's memory hacks back to one year earlier, in French Riviera, while the movie flashes back into its varicolored richness, it is a guilt- ridden recollection, - seven, is my lucky number, murmurs Cécile, but exactly, what happened last summer?Tragedy happens, certainly, bonjour tristesse literally means hello sadness, but before that, there were happy moments, Cécile was on vacation with Raymond and his young lady friend Elsa (Demongeot, a blonde bombshell in Marilyn Monroe-ish chicness) in his villa, soon they were joined by Anne (Kerr), an old friend of Raymond's late wife, Cécile's godmother, now a divorcée, whereas Cécile found herself a new beau, Philippe (Horne), an open-faced, handsomely-built young man living nearby.The cast must have such a great time in making this film, sunbathing, swimming, water-skiing, dining, drinking, gambling and wiggling, everything sounds like a paid holiday. Then, bang, Raymond expresses his affections to Anne and proposes to marry her, and suddenly Elsa being kicked out of the picture. The match seems perfect, even in the eyes of Cécile, maternity endearment is something very healthy for her growth and nobody could be more suitable than Anne to assume that role. But soon, the spoiled side of her nature eggs her to defy Anne's matronly discipline, and an apparently naive plan (with the help of Philippe, a fool in love, and the "brilliant" Elsa) to scuttle Raymond and Anne's marriage will go haywire and the aftermath will make Cécile rue the day.There is something inherently vapidly in Sagon's story, but the movie retains magnificently a superficial but bewitching unpretentiousness of Raymond and Cécile, which makes them watchable, they are not intelligent people, Anne is evidently too good for them, but on the other hand, they are very much honest to themselves, the tragedy could have been avoided (there is no clarification it is an accident or a suicide, but the marriage would still hit a bumper road in a long run), in a way, Cécile's scheme only help Anne to see through Raymond's nature, so from a more cautionary aspect, the whole story seems to bear witness that we should never have the illusion that one's unconditional love can change a person, either take it wholly or leave it immediately, there is no grey area here.Preminger really loved Seberg, after the flop of SAINT JOAN (1957), Seberg's screen debut, he didn't give her up, here he cherry-picks her a tailor-made role and unreservedly puts her in the centre of the narrative, to flesh out her elfin mischief, singular delicacy, all in a continental style, prepares her for the star-making triumph in Godard's BREATHLESS (1960).The Niven-Kerr pair works side by side twice in a calendar year, compared with a more self- inflicted restraint in Delbert Mann's ensemble piece SEPARATE TABLES (1958), Niven is much more nonchalant as a sybarite, to quote Raymond - is silly and vain, whereas Kerr hops up with a refreshingly relaxed air of being "the unattainable Anne" during her flashy entrance, only not soon would she backtrack to the stereotype of "Raymond, I cannot be casual" seriousness, or, in Cécile's words, "the prim, prissy and prude".Calling BONJOUR TRISTESSE a high point of Preminger or any these leading stars' coruscating careers is a far-fetched argument, however, its reputation and mojo as a level-headed cinematic raconteur endures the test of time, sleekly orchestrated by Preminger's efficient artifice and Auric's string-heavy score.

Seems I didn't miss all that much - if indeed anything at all - by failing to catch up with this oven-ready turkey until now. As a director Preminger was uneven at best and often relied on controversy - The Moon Is Blue, The Man With The Golden Arm - in lieu of genuine talent; whilst it's true he had at least one Laura in him that was outweighed by one too many Hurry Sundowns. Having 'discovered' Jean Seberg and miscast her monumentally in St. Joan the previous year he attempted to prove his judgment right on the money by using her again in this adaptation of a novel by a seventeen year old French girl, proving only how far off the money he was. This is best described as a Soap with Classical pretensions. Living a quasi incestuous Riviera lifestyle with swinger pop David Niven, Seberg is miffed when Deborah Kerr looms up as prospective wife/stepmom material and plots her downfall. That's all, folks. Students or irony may or may not relish the fact that this movie was released just as the new wavelet was approaching the shore of real Cinema and Seberg, unable to register there, went on to star in Godard's Brainless and help give that new wavelet its brief moment in the sun before Real Talents reclaimed the cinema. Nice one, Otto.

David Niven and Jean Seberg say "Bonjour Tristesse" in this 1958 film directed by Otto Preminger and also starring Deborah Kerr and Mylène Demongeot. Niven and Seberg are Raymond and Cecile, a father and daughter vacationing on the Riviera and having a superficial blast for themselves. Raymond has his current girlfriend Elsa (Demongeot) living with them as well. When a good friend of Raymond's late wife, Anne (Kerr) comes to visit, things change - at first for the better, as the four of them continue the party atmosphere. Later, when Anne becomes Raymond's fiancée and begins to discipline Cecile, the fun stops. Cecile decides that Anne will have to go.The film is told in flashback, black and white representing the present and glorious color used to tell the story, which is narrated by Seberg.There's lots about this movie that is fascinating, and some of it just sort of falls flat. The idea that a deep-thinking, responsible career woman comes into the lives of two bon vivants is an interesting one, and you couldn't ask for a better cast. The beginning of the film, and even Cecile's plan to get rid of Anne that she brings Elsa and her own boyfriend Phillipe in on has a lighthearted feel to it. What Raymond and Cecile never considered is that there are ramifications for actions, Cecile due to her immaturity and Raymond because he's Raymond.David Niven is terrific as the dashing Raymond, who loves a party, and Deborah Kerr gives a warm performance as Anne, who truly loves him and wants to ground both him and his daughter. The curiosity here is Seberg. She is as always the perfect gamine. Any time she's in a scene, you can't take your eyes off of her. She's so darn beautiful. Yet I don't think I've ever heard her say one line that I believed. And she's one actress where it just doesn't seem to matter. We hear a lot about "it" - well, she really had it.Gorgeous scenery - you want to leave for the Riviera immediately. And, truth to tell, spending some time with Raymond, Cecile and Elsa before the arrival of Anne wouldn't be bad either.