Desertman84 L'Appartement is a French film that stars Vincent Cassel, Monica Bellucci and Romane Bohringer.It was directed by Gilles Mimouni.The movie follows the romantic obsession of Max (Cassel), a young corporate hotshot who leaves his successful new world behind to search for his elusive lost love Lisa (Bellucci). His mad quest begins after he accidentally overhears Lisa's melodic voice speaking in the phone booth next door. But before he knows it she is gone. Still, he is so elated that he abandons his plans, lies to his fiancée, and after leaving his luggage with his pal Lucien, sets off to find her. The hunt leads to a fabulous apartment, where he saves a girl from a suicide thinking that she is Lisa. But this girl, Alice is as drab and mousy as Max's Lisa is beautifully feline. Max becomes involved with Alice, unaware that she also dates Lucien. Meanwhile the real Lisa attempts to break free from her obsessive rich lover who may have murdered his wife. For this reason, she continues to avoid her apartment, which she has generously loaned to Alice. When these characters collide, the stage is set for a tragic denouement.The Apartment is more intriguing in terms of its technical attributes than anything else. The convoluted plot ensures that the viewer is kept at arm's length throughout the film and although everything comes together fairly well in the third act, the overly deliberate pace and seemingly aimless vibe make it difficult to actually care once that happens. That being said, there's no denying the effectiveness of the performances and the film does seem as though it'd improve on repeat viewings - yet in terms of its ability to make any kind of emotional impact on the viewer.

kenjha A Parisian leaves behind his fiancé to pursue an old flame but becomes involved with a third woman. It sounds like a good premise for a French comedy but this one is serious - except that it's laughably bad. The plot is so convoluted, with repeated flashbacks and events unfolding from multiple points of view, that it becomes tiresome keeping track of who's doing what to whom in which time frame. The script, direction, and editing are so sloppy that it's not surprising that this is writer-director Mimouni's only film. The ending is ludicrous. About the only reason for sitting through this turkey is Bellucci, although she isn't given much screen time.

Daniel Secrieru Considering this film was launched in 1996, I would have to say it's the French original based on which Wicker Park was made. With a cast of French and American actors, the story seemed peculiarly familiar to me, having seen the American version first. But when the restaurant scene started it all came back to me. If you've already seen Wicker Park, I don't recommend this movie. First because you already know all the plot turns that make the story great and second because - I never thought I would ever say this - Diane Kruger is much better for the part than Monica Bellucci (and this comes from a man who is a big fan of the latter). Furthermore, it is my opinion that Cassel - again, comparing him with Mathew Lillard in Wicker Part - played his part like a stiff. I haven't seen many of his movies, but from those I did see I can safely say he didn't commit to this role. All in all, I give it 5/10 because the story was ruined for me and because the lead actors, though all good ones, did not impress me in this production.

John Francisco A lot has already been written about the film itself, so instead of adding to the noise I just want to say a few words on the two female actors.It has to be a daunting prospect for any actress to star, in a sense, versus the spectacular Monica Bellucci, but Romane Bohringer pulls it off to sensational ends. A film starring Monica Bellucci where I fall in love with the other girl?? That's not supposed to happen.It's been said a thousand times, but Monica Bellucci strikes the saddest figure in modern cinema. I have never before seen such innate sadness. She would not be out of place breaking Lon Chaney's heart.