The Aviator’s Wife [La femme de l’aviateur] **** (1981, Philippe Marlaud, Marie Rivière, Anne-Laure Meury, Mathieu Carrière) – Classic Movie Review 9460

The Aviator’s Wife [La Femme de l’Aviateur] (1981) is an excellent conversation piece from Eric Rohmer (the opening one of his Comédies et Proverbes series) about a young Frenchman François (Philippe Marlaud) and the eponymous lady, aviator’s wife Anne (Marie Rivière), having an unhappy affair, cheating on him amid other encounters.

François (Marlaud) persuades a woman he encounters, Lucie (Anne-Laure Meury), to track Anne (Rivière)’s aviator husband Christian (Mathieu Carrière).

There is typical, careful direction by a back-on-form Rohmer of one of his typically bitter-sweet story of the caprices of love. It is blown up from 16 millimeter.

Also in the cast are Fabrice Luchini, Haydée Caillot, Lisa Heredia, Philippe Caroit, Coralie Clément, María Luisa García and Rosette.

It is followed by A Good Marriage (1982), Pauline at the Beach (1983), Full Moon in Paris (1984), Le rayon vert [The Green Ray] [Summer] (1986) and Boyfriends and Girlfriends (1987).

The Aviator’s Wife [La femme de l’aviateur] is directed by Eric Rohmer, runs 106 minutes, is written by Eric Rohmer, is made by Les Films du Losange, is released by Gaumont (1981) (France), New Yorker Films (1981) (US) and Artificial Eye (1981) (UK), is written by Eric Rohmer, is shot in Eastmancolor by Bernard Lutic, is produced by Margaret Menegoz and is scored by Jean-Louis Valero.

The park scenes were filmed in the Parisian park of Buttes Chaumont, Paris 19.

Philippe Marlaud (1959–1981).

Tragically Philippe Marlaud died from burns on 18 August 1981, aged 22, a few months after the film’s release, after his camping tent caught fire in a campsite near Bormes-les-Mimosas, France.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 9460

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