Review of Love Me If You Dare (2003) by Jolique L — 02 Nov 2008

The story begins with the colorful tin half-buried in cement and takes us in a reverse storytelling. Young Julien gave Sophia the colored tin which started off a game of dare where the holder of the tin can demand anything from the other. They will do anything to win the dare, so much that they are ignorant to the hurt they cause others, so much that as this childhood game continues into their adulthood, Sophia no longer knows if Julien loves her truly or so out of a dare and she started building this invisible fence to never be hurt by him. Julien, on the other hand, choose to fulfill the expectations of his dad and responsibilities to his wife and children, was punished by Sophia with ten years of separation.

Director Yann Samuell uses colors, fuzziness and pace to illustrate the beautiful world that thrills Sophia and Julien. The bright and colorful world has becomes a veil of protection from the sharper colored, realistic world that demanded they abide the proper rules and decorous mannerism. I still am overwhelmed by the passion and the outlawful behavior of the characters and at the same time fascinated by their daring desperation of unfulfilled love... Yet love such as this is unacceptable. With the final fuzzy imagery of them growing old together, Sophia made the final dare to Julien... to literally seal their love by locking in forever embrace as unknowing contractors pour cement onto them, the tin half-buried in cement.

I watched this movie again (on U-tube this time) and I still love the unconventionality of the dark-comedy-romance, not to mention the way la vie en rose fits the movie like a glove!