Stroke Of Luck (Coup De Chance) Noosa Sun Matinee

Coup De Chance (Stroke Of Luck) Film trailer HERE 

It's been dubbed by one critic as the world's longest mother-in-law gag, but Stroke Of Luck (Coup De Chance) is yet another example of the masterful film making of Woody Allen.  This, his 50th feature,  is for the 1st time  entirely in the French language with a French cast.

Set in Paris its nuanced title comes from the chance street meeting between two old high school friends, Fanny and Alain.  Alain, a writer was besotted by Fanny in his youth and they quickly become closer even though Fanny is now married (her second) to Jean who works in finance and is rich as creases. He has a slightly dubious past, is jealous and becomes suspicious even though they are the 'ideal couple' living the ultimate bourgeois life.

He hires a provate detective to track his wife and events unfold in turn. Fanny's mother-in-law is a frequest visitor to the houehold and once an ardent supporter of Jean's she starts to harbour her own suspicions about him.

Clocking in at a neat one hour 30 mins, (Allen's normal running time)  Coup De Chance runs at a swift clip, is a joy to watch and absorb and is subtle critique of marriage, normality, bourgeois life, you name it....all the tropes fans of his work will be familiar with.

This is a film event.  Allen's 50th(!!) film, all in French and it's being touted as a ‘sensational’ contemporary romantic thriller, the spiritual successor to Woody’s wonderful Match Point.  It's a joy to be able to screen it as part of our 2nd Summer French series.

"A tight and effective French-language thriller that is also, among other things, the world’s longest mother-in-law joke." Roger Ebert.com

"[Coup de Chance] is fresh, ironic, with complex situations and a story that respects the audience's intelligence without moralisms and an unexpected, funny denouement that could only be dreamed up by Allen." El Pais.

" Impressive.  It’s certainly as good as anything Allen has made since 2013’s Blue Jasmine." Rolling Stone

" The charm and sparkle here are real." Daily Telgraph U.K.