Pauline à la plage (Pauline at the Beach)

The third instalment of Comédies et proverbes (Comedies and Proverbs) is a delightful summer comedy of manners about love, lust and misunderstandings. In a seaside resort on the Normandy coast, six characters become entangled in a web of flirtation, jealousy and poor choices. Fifteen-year-old Pauline (Amanda Langlet) observes with an innocent eye as the adults lose themselves in theories about love, whilst their amorous schemes rarely yield the desired result. What begins as a charming vaudeville gradually takes on a melancholic undertone. Rohmer combines sophisticated dialogue with a seemingly simple yet extremely precise mise-en-scène. The sunny beaches, the gentle September light and the subtle colour compositions inspired by Matisse make Pauline à la plage one of his most sensual and visually enchanting films, thanks also to the understated virtuosity of master cinematographer Nestor Almendros.