It is clear that Adèle (Vanessa Paradis) is a subject problematic and unlucky. A girl considered by men but most often alluded and abandoned. On the other hand there is the figure Gabor (Daniel Auteuil), a knife launcher: when Adèle is about to commit suicide from Paris on a bridge the two meet. The screenplay of this film in black and white seems to capture the magical realism of the 1950s where the protagonists are a kind story of solitary souls, eccentric, but basically two people desperate to search happiness. A choice of Patrice Lecont who supports cynical and tragic humor: the plot reveals a real issue of life or death where the luck of the protagonists is constantly challenged, he throws knives while she becomes the target of the target. To conclude, despite metaphorically I love Vanessa Paradis and the film I liked I recognize for the female protagonist an adolescent role that which plays with life and death.

She: Suicidal, about to jump off a bridge. He: A carnival knife thrower. Would you like to be my target, he asks. Sounds like a match made in heaven. Patrice Leconte's La Fille sur le Ponte may be a bit of quirky romantic fluff, but its great fluff. It's a diverting entertainment without much purchase, thank goodness, for the admiration of deeper meanings with which some Anglo cinephiles deaden the experience of good French movies. It's the story of two people who probably could only exist in the movies. Adele (Vanessa Paradis) is 21, endlessly compliant and endlessly unlucky in love (and with just about everything else, too.) She's a charming gamin, especially if you're the guy trying to pick her up. "Boys attract me," she says, "like beautiful clothes. I always want to try them on." At last she figures out that, for her, while sex is a friendly thing, it never seems to last or to work into anything else. "Funny, isn't it, how people can seem madly in love when they're not. It must be easy to fake." So there she is one evening about to jump off a bridge. Gabor (Daniel Auteuil), an older man, tries to talk her out of jumping. He'd like her to be his target. With her figure and his skill, they'll be a hit...although, he points out, "past the age of 40 knife throwing becomes erratic." She decides to jump anyway. He rescues her and before long they are an act. Adele continues to offer her innocently explicit friendship to those she encounters. She discovers a gift for luck. Gabor? Well, Adele and Gabor develop a distinctly odd approach to intimacy...knife throwing. Giving and receiving seems to bring out all the heavy breathing and beads of perspiration one would expect from the other activity. Note: Do not try this at home just to find out for yourself. What starts as a clever, funny suicidal set up moves into a clever, amusing story about knife throwing as a metaphor for sex and roulette as a metaphor for...well, maybe a relationship. It's so off-kilter, and Adele and Gabor are so attractive and interesting, that their quirky relationship is almost a guilty pleasure to watch. Will Adele decide to move a little so she can find out if one of Gabor's thrown knives is better than a young man's.... Will Gabor ever decide to try something other than a knife to intrigue Adele with.... Will Leconte's amusing mixture of luck, cold steel, eroticism, clever dialogue and shrewd acting come to a happy ending? When things begin to edge a little too close to what passes as seriousness in the movies, about three-quarters of the way through, Leconte has the good sense to pull back. This, after all, is a quirky romantic comedy done with flourishes and knives. You should see the movie. It's well worth it. Daniel Auteuil, one of the screen's great actors, manages to make of Gabor a man with an interestingly unspoken life for us to think about. When a movie depends on quick, clever dialogue, it needs to be delivered matter-of-factly, with no delays for glances, sighs or eye work. Auteuil's matter-of-factness is as deliberately amusing as his lines. Paradis, on the other hand, must make this young woman who lies down so willingly someone we like. Not only does Paradis give us pleasure in sex, when she's around she makes us feel almost young, innocent and erotic ourselves. And how nice it is to see a beautiful star actress without perfect teeth. Some critics have noted the several affectionate references to well known French films Leconte places in The Girl on the Bridge. I wouldn't know. I was too busy enjoying the movie. However, for those who might be intrigued enough to watch some of Leconte's other movies, he'll give you a variety of emotions to deal with. My favorites include Monsieur Hire, full of uneasiness and uncomfortable feelings; The Widow of Saint-Pierre, which comes close to tragedy; Ridicule, as malicious and amusing as you could wish; and my favorite to date, Man on the Train, a wonderful, thoughtful movie of sadness, regret and fulfillment. The Girl on the Bridge is beautifully photographed in black and white.

This is an odd little film, partly because it's filmed in black and white and partly because the story has some strange elements. Some of the strange elements involve Daniel Auteuil's job (he's a knife thrower), the weird psychic bond that develops between him and Vanessa Paradis, and the unusual spate of good luck she has once they meet. However, it seems when they are apart, neither does particularly well. However, Auteuil's character is very apprehensive to profess his deep feelings for her--perhaps it's because he is quite a bit older than her or because he's not a particularly handsome man--the movie never really says.What really stood out for me was the monologue that Vanessa Paradis did at the beginning of the film. This really blew me away because this actress had originally been a model and singer--and began acting only later in life. It appeared to be in one take and she went from normal to producing real-looking tears without a cutaway scene--now THAT'S brilliant acting. Additionally, the film dared to be different--and for that it scores big points. Plus, it's a nice little romance--so what more could you want?

My ex-girlfriend suggested this movie. She actually gave me a copy. I had thought, previously, since she dug (or seemed to dig) Henry Fool (she later said that she must've been influenced by me, after having attempted to watch Surviving Desire and turning it off because it was too "talky") that perhaps the movie would at least be remotely intriguing. It wasn't.It was a definite case of style over substance. Clearly influenced by MTV (or in Canada's case, Much Music), it was chock full of interesting camerawork, beautiful cinematography, but the sentiments were bland and the story annoying and the characters unappealing. The story is about two incredibly needy, albeit unusual people (well, one is a knife thrower and the other is suicidal) who are tied at the hip and experience this "serendipity" and esp regarding each other. Several scenes show them walking aroung "talking" to each other (each one is in another part of the world). The movie is meant to show this tragic, romantic love affair full of magic and wonder and telepathy, but in the end, it's just a load of hogwash. The film suffers from overwrought sentimentality and a grating, unbelievable storyline that is all about the forces of fate etc.I was just really put off by the whole fairy tale, Cinderella aspect to the story, which seems to broadcast that people can't survive alone, and there is one person out there who is your soul mate. I realize that my own personal biases may influence this opinion, but so be it. I'm not a big fan of fate/ destiny/ the idea that our lives are pre-written. This film is a sickening lecture on the presence of serendipidy and fate and, in the end, I wanted to watch something real and gritty (Trainspotting or something). I mean, I don't mind flights of fancy etc., but this film was trollop. If you're a hopeless romantic who believes in needy, clingy relationships full of jealousy and mistrust, then you may enjoy this flick. If you have more of a philisophical bent and you believe in choice and free will and aren't usually pursuaded by layers of glossy style to conceal the fact that the film is a drab fairy tale, don't see this film. Go see Swimming Pool or 400 Blows if you want excellent french cinema. Avoid this at all costs.I give it 1 out of 10.