It's probably pure chance that I saw this film for the first time - in the restored version by Agnes Varda - a few days after I was leafing through Demy's Collected Lyrics which have recently been published in France. It's clear from Frame #1 that this is a film to which you either have to surrender as the credits roll or squirm in embarrassment for the next two hours. Demy's 'fairy-tale' is as unashamedly full of coincidences as any Shakespeare comedy even to the extent of employing one set of twins, albeit non-identical but played by real-life sisters Catherine Deneuve and Francois Dorleac. If you're going to stop and wonder why the streets are always available for dancing in - i.e. traffic-free - or why Danielle Darrieux runs a cafe/bar which is little more than a counter, a glass roof and no substantial walls, then you're in the wrong movie. Demy loved chocolate-box movies and he complemented them with chocolate-box music from Michel Legrand - I was pleasantly surprised to realize that I already knew the main love them via its English lyric by Alan and Marilyn Bergman, You Must Believe In Spring, recorded definitively by Marlene VerPlanck - and the score, on the whole is lush without being memorable and ranging from fifties type small combo jazz to all-out string ensembles and if everyone - including Gene Kelly - except Danielle Darrieux is dubbed so what. Jacques Perrin is also on hand as a love-sick sailor, what else, and after seeing him play more or less the same role (narrator) in both Cinema Paradiso and Les Choristes the effect is like seeing a photograph of a friend acquired in middle age when he was a young man. Definitely worth a second viewing and who knows, I may even go so far as to buy the DVD.

Jacques Demy loved the American musical genre, as seen already in some of the films that preceded this one, most notably, "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg", one of the best musical pictures of all times from France. Even with his magnificent "Lola", he inserted music and dance in it. Mr. Demy followed his earlier success with "Les Demoiselles de Rochefort". Unfortunately, French audiences didn't like this new musical at all, which was a shame. But the public can be fickle and perhaps the story didn't hold the public's attention in the new film. In 1996, Jacques Demy's widow, the talented Agnes Varda, a director on her own right, lovingly restored this movie, and the public responded to it the way they should have done thirty years before.

The film was Jacques Demy's way to pay tribute to American musicals, especially the glossy pictures produced by MGM in its heyday. He even got the valuable cooperation of Gene Kelly, a man who felt at home in France and who is an asset in the film in an inspired appearance. The film consolidated the cooperation between Demy and Michel Legrand, his invaluable collaborator. Mr. Legrand's music is tuneful as it advances the action in the film.

The plot is simple, and yet, the viewer is won over by the characters in the story. There is a feeling of love throughout the film and of hope. The twin sisters and their ambitions are at the center of the story. Also, their mother, who had loved and lost, finds happiness at last with the man she longed for.

The cast is impeccable. A young Catherine Deneuve is a pleasure to watch. Her real life sister, Francoise Dorlac, a beautiful actress who died much too young, is another great asset in the film. The wonderful Danielle Darrieux plays the mother. Michel Piccoli is Monsieur Dame, the owner of the music instrument shop who never stops loving Madame Yvonne, the twin girls' mother. Gene Kelly makes a magnificent appearance, he also contributed to the dancing numbers. George Chakiris and Grover Dale have some good moments. A young Jacques Perrin plays the sailor who is looking for his ideal woman.

Jacques Demy made a film that, while it will not please everyone, is a feast for the eye. Agnes Varda also needs to be given credit for the great job she did in restoring her late husband's work.

I was thrilled to see this film, as Jacques Demy had just previously made one of my all-time favorite French films, THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG (also starring Catherine Deneuve). THE UMBRELLAS was a magical and wonderful musical and was so perfect in its sweetness and subtlety.

I was hoping for all this in THE YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT, but was pretty disappointed. Now this isn't to say it's a bad film (it's not),but subtle and magical, certainly not. The main problem is that the film is so gosh darn brash and loud! Instead of subtlety, the film was full of intense primary colors, loud jazzy music and too much dancing (and I'm not talking about "nice" dancing but spinning and kicking to very intense upbeat jazz).

In fact, I was almost tempted to turn off the movie just a few minutes into it because of its intensity and lack of charm. However, I persisted and found the movie was still pretty good (when there was no jazz). Some of the songs were actually good and I was able to ignore all the irrelevant dancing. So what did I like? Well, the story, though very contrived and predictable, was very sweet and engaged me. I really found myself pulling for the people to find the love of their lives. That's because the story has lots of parallel stories and you see both the men and women who are looking for their loves. The audience knows who they are destined to meet, but again and again they just miss meeting each other. This was handled very well and by the end of the film, I really was pulled into the story. Not a great film by any means, but well worth your time--just be sure to hit the mute button during some of the songs!

PS--Gene Kelly and George Chakiris (WEST SIDE STORY) are both well known actors from American films. Seeing them here singing and dancing their hearts out was pretty interesting. In some scenes it seems obvious that Kelly is actually speaking French, but in others (especially the songs) he is inexplicably dubbed.

PPS--I just saw RAGE OF Paris (1938) the day before I saw this film. Danielle Darrieux also starred in this movie but she looked totally different in this film, thanks to almost 30 years. It was really interesting to see this contrast.