SCREEN IT! PARENTAL REVIEW: A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT (2025)

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Drama: Despite being told that her boyfriend perished in WWI, a young woman sets out to discover what happened to him, fully believing he's still alive.

PLOT:

It's 1920 France and Mathilde (AUDREY TAUTOU) has just received word that her boyfriend and childhood friend Manech (GASPARD ULLIEL), perished in WWI battling the Germans. A young woman who's lived with her aunt Bénédicte (CHANTAL NEUWIRTH) and uncle Sylvain (DOMINIQUE PINON) ever since her parents' deaths some time ago, Mathilde refuses to believe the news to be true. After all, she's sure she would feel it in her heart if he were gone from her life.

Accordingly, she sets out, along with the aid of detective Germain Pire (TICKY HOLGADO), to discover what happened to Manech and determine his fate. She learns that in 1917 he and four other soldiers -- Six-Sous (DENIS LAVANT), Ange Bassignano (DOMINIQUE BETTENFELD), Benoît Notre Dame (CLOVIS CORNILLAC) and Kleber Bouquet, a.k.a. the Eskimo -- were accused of self-inflicting wounds that presumably would be reason to be sent back home. Instead, the men were court-martialed and sentenced to abandonment in the ravaged, no man's land between the Germans and French on the front lines.

See Also

Denis Lavant, acteur fétiche de Leos Carax : « Notre relation passe beaucoup par le silence »

As Mathilde and Pire continue their independent investigations and a distraught woman, Tina Lombardi (MARION COTILLARD), seeks revenge on those she believes responsible for her boyfriend's death, young Mathilde remains resolute that not only will she find that Manech is alive and well, but also that they'll ultimately be reunited.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?

Older teens might be, as might anyone who's a fan of someone in the cast, but it doesn't seem likely that this subtitled, period piece will be of interest to many other kids.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R

For violence and sexuality.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:

AUDREY TAUTOU plays a young woman who strongly believes in her heart and mind that her boyfriend didn't perish in WWI and thus sets out to find out everything she can about his fate. She briefly uses profanity and has sex with Manech in flashbacks.

GASPARD ULLIEL plays her young boyfriend who found himself abandoned by his own army after being convicted of a self-inflicted war wound. He does what he can to survive and has sex with Mathilde in various flashbacks.

TICKY HOLGADO plays the resourceful detective that Mathilde hires to find Manech.

CHANTAL NEUWIRTH and DOMINIQUE PINON plays Mathilde's aunt and uncle who've cared for her since her parents' deaths.

DOMINIQUE BETTENFELD, CLOVIS CORNILLAC and DENIS LAVANT play other men condemned to die in the battleground's no man's land after inducing self-inflicted wounds on themselves in hopes of being sent home from the war.

MARION COTILLARD plays a woman hell-bent on getting revenge on those she believes are responsible for her boyfriend's death during the war (and uses sexuality to aid her in doing so).

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

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OUR WORD TO PARENTS:

The following is a brief summary of the content found in this R-rated drama. Profanity consists of at least 4 "s" words, while a handful of other expletives and some colorful phrases are uttered. Brief and non-explicit, sexually related dialogue is present, as are several sexual encounters (some of them graphic, with nudity, movement and related sounds), while a woman is briefly seen while masturbating. Nonsexual nudity (a woman's bare butt while getting a full-body massage from a man) and various old-style nude photos (breasts and butts) are also seen.

Violence consists of all sorts of lethal and bloody, wartime encounters where many people are wounded or killed (by gunfire, explosions and the like), sometimes with very gory results. Some men also induce self-inflicted wounds upon themselves, while a vengeful woman kills various men, and some of that material and other scenes may be unsettling to some viewers. Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, while some drink and/or smoke. Some tense family material (previously dead parents and war widows, etc.) is also present.

Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE

There's talk of cheap wine.

A man has a beer.

A couple has beer in a flashback.

Mathilde and others have wine or other liquor.

Mathilde and her uncle have wine, with her aunt thinking she's drunk due to her wild sounding idea.

A husband and wife have wine.

Before having sex with a man, a woman asks if he wants a "pick me up" (drink), but he doesn't.

Sylvain and another man have wine.

A person drinks.

A man has a drink.

BLOOD/GORE

As a solider goes to remove a dead soldier's boots, the dead man's head comes around and we see that he's missing part of his face (with very bloody/gory results).

A small explosion from gunpowder injures a man's hand (with bloody results).

We see a dead and dried out horse suspended up in a barren tree on the battlefield.

Ange takes a sleeping man's helmet, urinates in it (we hear the sound, but don't see anything), empties it, puts the helmet back and then wipes his hand on the sleeping man's clothing.

Two men hold another soldier, with one cutting his clothed buttock with a knife, resulting in a lot of blood.

Two soldiers purposefully shoot each other in the hand (partially seen, with some bloody results) in hopes of getting out of the army.

An explosion blows a person apart, with bloody and "meaty" parts covering another person.

Mathilde's dog farts (played for humor).

We see horse dung roll down to a man's feet.

After making a man think she's sexually interested in him, a woman ties him, and then shoots the mirror on the ceiling, sending shards of glass falling down onto and into him (with bloody results seen then and then again later).

A woman holds a syringe of blood to another person's neck.

We see a man urinating.

Men race out of a trench to charge the enemy, but machine gun fire mows down many of them (with some bloody results), while explosions knock down, wound and/or kill more.

A man's face is bloody after he's been wounded.

As a bandage is unwrapped, we see a very bloody hand.

We see various bloody soldiers in a war hospital.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE

The various soldiers have both types of attitudes toward their enemy.

Ange takes a sleeping man's helmet, urinates in it (we hear the sound, but don't see anything), empties it, puts the helmet back and then wipes his hand on the sleeping man's clothing.

Some viewers may see the soldiers with self-inflicted wounds (that they hope will get them sent home) as having bad attitudes.

Mathilde poses as more disabled than she is (riding in a wheelchair when she can walk) to take advantage of others to go through some papers.

A woman kills various people she believes responsible for a loved one's death in the war.

There's talk that the condemned men were pardoned, but that an officer kept that news to himself.

FRIGHTENING SCENES

Scenes listed under "Violence" and "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling, suspenseful or scary to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material.

Some viewers may be disturbed by the sight of a broken statue of Jesus on the cross that's hanging by one arm in a rainy battlefield.

Benoît purposefully shoots himself in the hand after placing his hand at the end of the bayonet (we don't see the impact, but we initially think he's going to run the bayonet through his hand).

The five condemned men are let go, but are forced into the no man's land between the opposing forces. While out in that barren and devastated landscape, Germans fire at the men.

Mathilde poses as more disabled than she is to take advantage of others to go through some papers. When she drops many of them (after standing on her unstable wheelchair to reach them), she races to hide them before those helping her return.

We see an imagined bit where young Mathilde is dangling from the upper edge of a lighthouse, with young Manech holding on to her.

A biplane flies by Manech on the battlefield with the gunner in the back firing its tail-mounted machine gun at him, and he's hit by some of that.

We see old-style, black and white film footage (grainy, etc.) of an execution by guillotine from a distance. We see the blade drop (but no severed head) and then men quickly rolling the body into a box.

A man nearly smothers Mathilde with a pillow, but he stops and a lantern is knocked over, starting a small fire in her bedroom (that she quickly puts out).

Bombs are dropped on a large hangar that's serving as a makeshift hospital. One is stuck through the roof and the tether holding a hydrogen-filled zeppelin comes loose, sending the craft headed toward the bomb's nose. It finally makes slow contact and everyone inside panics and flees. We then see a big hydrogen explosion and many are presumably killed inside that hangar.

GUNS/WEAPONS

Handguns/Rifles/Machine guns/Various explosives/Knives: Used to wound or kill many people. See "Violence" for details.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR

Phrases: "It's been sh*tting shells," "Sh*t-hole," "Did it" (have sex), "Shut up," "Bloody hell," "Whore," "Hussy," "(Poor) Bastard," "Doggie fart, gladdens my heart" and "Whorehouse."

Some of the men induce self-inflicted wounds on themselves.

Ange takes a sleeping man's helmet, urinates in it (we hear the sound, but don't see anything), empties it, puts the helmet back and then wipes his hand on the sleeping man's clothing.

A man pulls his gun upon meeting a woman under a bridge at night. She removes her glasses, but a chain attached to them pulls the trigger on a gun she's wearing, thus shooting and fatally wounding the man (no blood).

JUMP SCENES

None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)

A mild amount of suspenseful music plays in a few scenes.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)

None.

PROFANITY

At least 4 "s" words, 1 slang term for sex ("did it"), 1 for breasts ("boobs"), 3 damns, 1 ass and 1 hell.

SEX/NUDITY

We briefly see a man and woman passionately kissing and then see them having sex while standing. There's thrusting between her legs and related sounds, but no outright nudity.

There's talk about the first time Mathilde and Manech made love and we see a shot of them in bed in the spoons position (post-sex), with his hand cupping her clothed breast from behind. He moves it to deal with a spider, but she grabs his hand and puts it back over her breast.

We see a male commander bathing in a tub, and although there's a view down into the water, there's no nudity.

As Mathilde receives a full body massage from a man, we see her lying face down, completely nude. Her masseur vigorously massages her bare butt cheeks (while he comments on her form, there doesn't appear to be any other sexual overtones on his part). However, there's narration that she thought of him while masturbating and thus didn't take her long to climax. We then see a head and shoulders shot of her doing that (with brief, related sounds).

A woman manually stimulates a man (we see hand movement and hear related sounds, but don't see the actual act). We see other hookers come out in front of him, with one straddling him and he puts his hands on her chest (she's in skimpy lingerie that shows cleavage). Nothing else sexual happens, however, as the scene turns homicidal.

We see a man and woman getting dressed, presumably after sex (no nudity).

Since a husband can't father any more kids, and believing that having another will give him the number that will get him out of the army, he agrees to let a friend impregnate his wife. Later, that wife asks the friend if he wants a "pick me up" (drink), but he doesn't. He states that they could tell the husband that they "did it," but she decides to go through with it. When then see her in her old-fashioned undergarments after her dress drops and both are in the bedroom. We then see a graphic, aerial view of them having sex in the missionary position (with the camera moving up and down their bodies) with views of his bare butt and related movement, as well as related sounds from both. Later, we see a head and shoulders shot of them having sex in the rear-entry position while standing. Later, in a letter, the woman describes her husband being jealous and wondering about the particulars (when, where, what position, did she enjoy it, etc.) regarding such liaisons.

When a match goes out, a younger Manech relights it to find a younger Mathilde wearing less clothes than before. We then see a shot of her with her hand covering her bare breasts (parts of which can be seen). We then see a head and shoulders shot of them having sex, with movement and her sounds, but no nudity. We then see the above spoons scene where his hand cups her clothed breast from behind in bed.

Bénédicte shows a little cleavage.

We see a man looking at old nudie photographs (that show bare breasts and butts) with a magnifying glass.

A man sarcastically yells out something about, "You think we're at the whorehouse?" (during a battle).

SMOKING

Several characters smoke in various scenes (including Six-Sous, as well as Sylvain with a pipe).

A soldier lights a cigarette so that a sniper will shoot his hand (which he does with bloody results).

TENSE FAMILY SCENES

We hear that Mathilde's parents died in a bus accident when she was younger. We then hear that Mathilde was raised by and still lives with her aunt and uncle.

We see/hear stories of some war widows.

A woman (whose husband allowed his friend to try to impregnate her in order to have too many kids to be in the army) describes her husband being jealous and wondering about the particulars (when, where, what position, did she enjoy it, etc.) regarding such liaisons.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT

Mathilde gets word that Manech perished in the war, but she refuses to believe it.

Mathilde states (about her bad leg), "I'm lame, not dim."

World War I.

The horrors of war.

Superstitious behavior.

We hear that Mathilde had polio as a kid.

We see a man who has a hand made out of wood.

Wounding oneself in an attempt to get out of the army.

The notion that false hope will only make those needing it suffer.

We hear that a wounded man has amnesia.

VIOLENCE

A small explosion from gunpowder injures a man's hand (with bloody results) while he tries to kill a rat.

Some soldiers are shot, one runs another through with a bayonet, there's machine gun fire and some explosions.

A soldier purposefully burns his hand on a gun muzzle (to try to get out of the army).

A soldier kicks a dead body, prompting another soldier to grab and drown that first man in the mud.

Benoît purposefully shoots himself in the hand after placing his hand at the end of the bayonet (we don't see the impact).

Two men hold another soldier, with one cutting his clothed buttock with a knife, resulting in a lot of blood.

Two soldiers purposefully shoot each other in the hand (partially seen, with some bloody results) in hopes of getting out of the army.

Many soldiers are shot rushing out of a trench, with various explosions hitting some and some stuck in barbwire.

An explosion blows a person apart, with bloody and "meaty" parts covering another person.

The five condemned men are let go, but are forced into the no man's land between the opposing forces. While out in that barren and devastated landscape, Germans fire at the men.

Villagers chase a man out of their village (with some shooting in the air).

After making a man think she's sexually interested in him, a woman ties him, a gun is suggestively held to a mouth, and she spits on him. She then shoots the mirror on the ceiling, sending shards of glass falling down onto and into him (with bloody results seen then and then again later).

A woman holds a syringe of blood to another person's neck.

Two men briefly struggle while fighting.

We hear the sound of the local mailman wiping out on his bike at the driveway entrance to a house (not seen and played for laughs).

We see a flashback to cartridge belts exploding on a person, while a person uses a dead body as a shield from bullets that hit that body.

A tied-up prisoner is shot and his body slumps after that.

A man pulls his gun upon meeting a woman under a bridge at night. She removes her glasses, but a chain attached to them pulls the trigger on a gun she's wearing, thus shooting and fatally wounding the man (no blood).

A biplane flies by Manech on the battlefield with the gunner in the back firing its tail-mounted machine gun at him, and he's hit by some of that.

We see a flashback to a soldier shooting a person who's surrendered (no blood).

A man is shot dead and falls (no blood).

A biplane shoots at more people, but one manages to throw a grenade at it that explodes and sends the damaged plane toward a violent rendezvous with the ground (not seen).

We see a flashback to many explosions during a battle.

An explosion causes a trench to collapse, burying many soldiers inside it.

A bomb hits a person (we just see the resultant explosion).

Men race out of a trench to charge the enemy, but machine gun fire mows down many of them (with some bloody results), while explosions knock down, wound and/or kill more.

Mathilde slaps a man.

We see more war-related explosions.

We see old-style, black and white film footage (grainy, etc.) of an execution by guillotine from a distance. We see the blade drop (but no severed head) and then men quickly rolling the body into a box.

A man nearly smothers Mathilde with a pillow, but he stops and a lantern is knocked over, starting a small fire in her bedroom (that she quickly puts out).

We see another flashback to the war where a man is hit by shrapnel and blown into the air.

Bombs are dropped on a large hangar that's serving as a makeshift hospital. One is stuck through the roof and the tether holding a hydrogen-filled zeppelin comes loose, sending the craft headed toward the bomb's nose. It finally makes slow contact and everyone inside panics and flees. We then see a big hydrogen explosion and many are presumably killed inside that hangar.

Reviewed November 16, 2004 / Posted December 31, 2004<! -- End Review Content -- >