Apparently, this film caused controversy when it was released, as it provoked major debating over whether it was art or pornographic.
To be perfectly honest, I haven’t watched many pornographic films in my time, but of the few proper pornographic films I have watched (Channel 5 films are ‘adult erotic thrillers’ not ‘pornographic’)I have come to the following conclusions about the criteria of a pornographic film;
1. Little or no plot
2. Whatever script is involved has trivial throwaway lines done by actors that are more wooden than rocking chair.
3. All male actors are muscular, tandoori-tanned planks, and all females are silicon injected, overly made-up bimbettes.
I am pleased to announce that none of these apply to Romance.
Although it does involve the male character Robert (played by Francois Beleand) dominating the lead character Marie (played by Caroline Ducey), who also indulges in female masturbation, oral sex, anal sex, etc.
There is a perfectly plausible plot to this film, which is the female lead is frustrated by the lack of her boyfriend Paul’s (played by Sagamore Slevenin) sexual intimacy. She exerts her frustration on offers; one is from the reasonably buffed male Paolo (played by Roco Siffredi), who can clearly provide the sex, but ultimately does not satisfy her, as she is besotted with her boyfriend; the second completely takes advantage, as the scene borders on rape. Finally, she is dominated by one of her fellow colleagues Robert, a fifty something supervisor of the school where she teaches. He also gives her lavish attention, dining out, drinking fine wines, and eating caviar. This is all intermingled with typically French brooding, analysis and overall sexual philosophy.
It is ironic that when Paul does actually provide the sex, through her making him jealous, it is almost routine, robotic, and throwaway, yet it leaves Marie with the consequences of being pregnant.
Paul seems perfectly happy dancing, socialising with friends than being burdened with a lover, and eventual mother of his child, and as a result the film progresses effectively towards its angst-ridden culmination, which proves to be explosive to say the least.
Some of the imagery delivered by Ducey was interesting; with her idea that women should be trapped guillotine-style with only their genitalia on offer to any self-respecting punter who wishes to indulge themselves. It strips the glamour away from sex, and illustrates it as a primal act, which can involve varying degrees of passion depending on the parties involved. The dichotomy of her anger at being taken advantage of, and treated as an object, goes completely against her desire to make her boyfriend Paul jealous, with the expressed hope that he will make love to her as a result.
The touches of realism to an otherwise over-glamorised genre of film-making, set this film apart from other sex-related films; including scenes with trainee medical students examining Marie’s vagina, to the actual birth scene, which is in no way made schmaltzy and is portrayed as exactly what it is.
It is Ducey’s narration, which provokes the audience into thoughts over the way sex is portrayed in society that prevent the film from being gratuitous, and allows the experimentation to make sense.
Craig Aston
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