IT BOY (20 ans d'ecart) DVD (2013)

SYNOPSIS: The thirty-eight year old ambitious and workaholic editor of the fashion magazine Rebelle Alice Lantins returns from Brazil to Paris and loses her flash memory in the airplane. However the student of architecture Balthazar Apfel finds it and calls Alice to tell her. She schedules a meeting in the bar where Balthazar is drinking with his friends but he tells her the device is at home. He offers a ride in his scooter to Alice and while he is putting on a spare helmet on her, two coworkers of Alice see from an angle that make them believe that Balthazar is kissing Alice. They take a photo and posts it in the Twitter. On the next morning, everybody is laughing at Alice but the chief editor and her boss Vincent Khan loves the idea that Alice is dating someone twenty years younger. Alice decides to impersonate that she is in love with Balthazar to get a promotion in the magazine. But soon, she learns that she should not trifle with love.

MOVIE REVIEW:

Alice Lantins (Virginie Efira), near 40 with a kid in tow is a workaholic fashion magazine editor aiming for a promotion. But her immediate boss, Vincent finds her too uptight and she needs to find the rebel in her to qualify for the higher post. 

However when a young architectural student, Balthazar (Pierre Niney) accidentally picked up her USB drive, Alice suddenly finds herself a popular figure in the office especially Vincent who has a changed opinion of her. Cougar or not, Alice slowly finds herself falling in love with a guy twenty years her junior.    

It Boy is a light, frothy rom-com that will generally please everyone who loves the genre. Just to make it clear, French rom-coms are not really consider to be arthouse material. And this one is no exception as it belongs to one of those typical boy-meets-girl affairs with a slight twist. It’s no longer about two individuals with different characteristics falling in love; it’s about a boy-eater seeking its prey.

Directed and co-written by David Moreau (who helmed the remake of The Eye), the flick is filled with numerous interesting characters, clever dialogue and some tickling scenes. For example, Alice’s meddling sister attempt at matchmaking her with a gynecologist ended disastrously while Balthazar’s womanizing father’s advice to his boy isn’t exactly noteworthy. It’s so wonderfully paced save for an ending that seems awkwardly tack on.

Virginie Efira and Pierre Niney are incredible as the two lovers. Efira looks like the French version of Kate Hudson and to be honest, she is too gorgeous to be playing a cougar. Pierre Niney easily wins the heart of the audience with his soulful eyes and playful appearance. It Boy might not delve deep into the morality of having a younger partner but it remains a commercially appealing romantic comedy. I’m not surprise if Hollywood picks this one up for Hudson or Reese Witherspoon in the near future. 

SPECIAL FEATURES:

NIL

AUDIO/VISUAL:

The DVD comes with serviceable visual output and decent audio track. 

MOVIE RATING:

DVD RATING :

Review by Linus Tee