Sex Is Comedy (18)

You can only court so much controversy, so after Romance and A Ma Soeur!, it's refreshing to see Catherine Breillat in more playful mood with this semi-autobiographical portrait of a female director at work.

Sex may be comedy for Jeanne (Anne Parillaud), but it's no laughing matter for the Actor (Grégoire Colin) and Actress (Roxane Mesquida) who are to perform a graphic sex scene in her latest picture. The leading man is especially troublesome, refusing to take his socks off in bed and kvetching that his stunt schlong isn't nearly big enough.

Through it all Jeanne cajoles, bullies and confides. ""I need to love you to film you"," she shrugs while admitting: ""They have to hate me to act well"." If this is how Breillat works, it's a wonder she gets anything done at all. Still, an interesting glimpse of the creative process - - and proof that there's more to Breillat than arthouse porn and shock tactics.

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