5.7/10
Senior Film Conservator

A definitive 5.7/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Pour être aimé remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you're looking for a brisk, modern watch, keep scrolling. This one is for the folks who get a kick out of 1930s dialogue and don't mind when a movie feels like it’s being held together by stage plays and sheer willpower.
If you have zero patience for old-fashioned melodrama, you’ll probably find this thing painfully slow. It’s not exactly The Daredevil in terms of pacing.
The whole thing feels like a collection of polite conversations that suddenly turn into mini-crises. Paulette Dubost is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here, even when the script gives her almost nothing to actually do.
There is this one moment in the second act—I won't say which—where the camera just sits on a character’s face for about five seconds too long. You can literally see them trying to remember their next line. It’s kind of endearing, honestly.
It’s not as chaotic as Heebie Jeebies, thank god. It stays in its lane.
Honestly, the movie feels a lot like Searching for Fate in its desperation, but with way more talking. Maybe too much talking? I don’t know. Sometimes I just wanted them to stop explaining their feelings and just... walk out the door. 🚪
Don't go in expecting a masterpiece. Go in expecting a time capsule that’s a little cracked around the edges. It’s fine. It’s just fine.