Search: Starring Ludivine Sagnier

Ozon's quirky French murder mystery-cum-comedy-cum-musical is a brilliant pastiche on so many genres, it has no right to be as entertaining as it is, or as gripping.

The higher the emotions are supposed to be stacked, the less enjoyable and more obtuse the story becomes.

Love, life, poetry, passion, sensitivity, all magnificently exalted in song – quite a lot of songs actually – for your cross-Channel delectation and savouring.

Lee Tamahori opts to swim in the shallow waters of gaudy exploitation rather than explore some of the deeper issues of the politics of power.

Talk is everything, with action hinted at the edges, as Chabrol's camera sidles off to look at a casually thrown book, or skates away from anything salacious.

There are no prizes for guessing where this sprightly romantic comedy is going, but it's more entertaining than most along the way.

This is a trivial conceit, with a certain charm.

From the opening credits, this is a visual treat.

Even at its most epic there's something lacklustre about it all, as if the whole thing were being printed in ink-saving mode.

The war was monumental in its emotional and physical destruction. The film succeeds on many levels, most of all with the heart and mind of the boy witness.

There are too many scenes of men gabbling incoherently and not doing anything.

If looks could kill, the audience would be dead.

Ozon punctuates the film with some carefully studied compositions.

The delight of the drama stems from the well crafted characters, while its heft hinges on toxicity that may not be immediately obvious.