Love Songs For Tough Guys (New French Cinema)

Trailer HERE

Cannes Film Festival/Sydney Film Festival

Featuring a delicious ensemble cast led by the fabulous François Damiens, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi  and Vanessa Paradis the hilarious new romantic comedy from Samuel Benchetrit  is an affectionate story about a disparate group of ordinary people finding love and fulfillment through an unexpected source: the arts.

In the port city of Dunkirk, weary crime boss Jeff (The Bélier Family’s wonderful Damiens) two problems his turf is being muscled upon and  he’s fallen for Roxane, a supermarket cashier he adores from afar. He tries to win her heart by writing love poems, ( not somethign he is at all comfortable with) but doesn’t have the courage to deliver them.

Meanwhile, Jeff's grizzled and near-mute enforcer is sent to shake down local suburban widow Suzanne (a never-better Paradis), who is preparing to portray Simone de Beauvoir in the community theatre’s annual musical, but instead finds himself drawn into the actual production.

Featuring an exquisitely layered script that slowly reveals genuine understanding for all its characters, Love Songs for Tough Guys is a deadpan, huge-hearted and funny.  One of the big hits of the 2022 French Film Festival.