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My Night at Maud's
Directed by Eric Rohmer
A young man is snowed in with his best friend's amorous mistress.
1970 1h 50m Comedy TV-PG
Expires: Invalid date
0
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Jean-Louis, a 32-year-old Catholic engineer living a solitary life in Clermont-Ferrand, regularly sees a student, Françoise, at Mass but is too shy to approach her. One evening Jean-Louis meets Vidal, an old school friend, now a Marxist and philosophy professor. They have a Christmas drink together, and afterwards Vidal invites Jean-Louis to join him for dinner at the apartment of his friend Maud, a recent divorcée and intellectual with whom he has been conducting a rather dispirited affair. The dinner is a success, Pascal's philosophy and the relationship of principle to practice being the primary topics of conversation. Vidal finally excuses himself, suggesting that Jean-Louis avoid the inclement weather by staying in Maud's spare room; and Jean-Louis, who has drunk too much wine, gives in to the coaxing of Vidal and Maud. On a personal note, Maud tells Jean-Louis about the breakup of her marriage: her husband became involved with a student, a devout Catholic. She then reveals that she has no spare room; and, irresistibly witty and charming, she tries to seduce him. He insists on remaining chaste, having resolved to sleep in a chair. Although he later joins her on the bed, they do not make love. They part on friendly terms the next morning, and Jean-Louis finds the courage to introduce himself to Françoise. Jean-Louis and Françoise fall in love, though Jean-Louis continues for a time to see Maud. Françoise confesses that she once had an affair with a married man, but Jean-Louis forgives her, implying that he recently had an affair with a divorcée. Five years later Jean-Louis and Françoise, now married, meet Maud at the seashore: Françoise and Maud recognize each other, whereupon Jean-Louis realizes that Françoise was the student in Maud's former husband's life. He quickly forestalls his wife's embarrassment by telling her that Maud was the divorcée he slept with in the past.
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Opened in Paris in June 1969 as Ma nuit chez Maud; running time: 110 min.