Cleo from 5 to 7

A film review by Christopher Null - Copyright © 2003 Filmcritic.com

It's almost a film about nothing, with French chanteuse Cléo (Corinne Marchand) spending 90 minutes (not quite the 2 hours in the title) wandering around Paris before she gets the results of a medical test which will confirm whether or not she has cancer. Cléo spends the time exactly how we'd expect from a diva: going to a fortuneteller, running an errand with a friend, playing her latest song on a cafe jukebox and hoping someone will recognize her. She gets no pity from her friends -- only a stranger in the park seems to offer much consolation. And in the end, Cléo has figured out how to face an uncertain future.

Told in real time, Agnès Varda's film has tons of heart and brains to match. You can watch it as a tourist, just bouncing along with Cléo on her ride... or you can watch it as Cléo, and live in her shoes for awhile.

Aka Cléo de 5 à 7.

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Rating

4.0 out of 5 Stars

Cast and Crew

  • Director: Agnès Varda
  • Producer: Georges de Beauregard
  • Screenwriter: Agnès Varda
  • Stars: Corinne Marchand, Antoine Bourseiller, Dominique Davray, Dorothée Blank
  • MPAA Rating: NR