As the Boston French Film Festival wraps up at the MFA, Mr. P grows increasingly frantic. Another year will pass before he can indulge in the small-budget cinematic treasures of his homeland, so we scour the schedule with care. Among the offerings, Shall We Kiss, a romantic comedy by rising French director Emmanuel Mouret, stands out as the most tempting choice. Braving the Sunday crowds, we settle into a packed theater filled with Francophiles and Francophones for 96 minutes of quintessentially French cinema.
Shall We Kiss is an utterly charming film about adultery (leave it to the French to make infidelity feel adorable). The story begins with Emilie and Gabriel, two attractive strangers who meet serendipitously in the streets of Nantes. Over dinner, sparks fly, but when the night ends, Emilie refuses Gabriel’s request for a goodnight kiss. Her reason? Kissing, she insists, can be far more dangerous than it seems. To prove her point, she recounts a tale that takes up the bulk of the film.
Her story follows Judith and Nicolas, best friends whose close bond teeters into the territory of intimacy—with kisses, then sex—before blossoming into forbidden love. Complications ensue as Judith, already married to Claudio, fears hurting her husband. Nicolas, undeterred, devises a bizarre plan: he ropes in his freshly-ex-girlfriend Caline to seduce Claudio, paving the way for Judith and Nicolas to be together. Naturally, the scheme is as outlandish as it is amusing.
Emilie’s story is playful and witty, capturing the lightheartedness of a French sex farce. Yet the film’s real intrigue lies in the unspoken tension between Emilie and Gabriel. As the night stretches on, the weight of their unsaid—and unkissed—desires grows heavier. In a clever twist, the final scene reveals Emilie’s personal connection to the Judith and Nicolas saga, elevating the film from a charming romantic romp to something far more intelligent and nuanced.
With Shall We Kiss, Mouret delivers a film that is as much about the complexities of love and relationships as it is about the power of restraint. It’s clever, understated, and quintessentially French—making it the perfect finale to the festival’s lineup.
