Her and She and Him — Her and She and Him( Blu Ray)
From the early 1970s, Her and She and Him is a softcore French drama regarding a naïve ‘n’ guitar-strumming Swedish art student moving to Paris, to find lust, manipulation, and possible love. The film was released after relaxation in censorship, and showed a fair bit of lovemaking flesh, though it’s not just an all-out smut feast, as there is still a decent story, engaging dramatics, passable-if-soapy acting, and a fair bit of entertaining cheesy campness. Here from 88 Films, as part of their French Collection, is a Blu-ray release of the film. Taking in an HD scan of the picture, and a few extras.
Her and She and Him ( aka Claude et Greta, Any Time Anywhere) is from the year 1970. It was directed/co-written by Lyon, Rhône, France-born Max Pécas. Between the early 60s and late 80s, he had twenty-nine features to his name- these took in the likes of downbeat drama Sweet Violence (1962), exotic crime drama The Slave (1967), teen sex comedy Hot Dogs On Ibiza (1979), and crime thriller Brigade Of Death (1985).
The film opens, showing the blond pig-tailed, red jacket-wearing, and guitar case-carrying Greta (Astrid Frank) hitching. Fairly soon, she gets to her destination, Paris- we find out she’s a Swedish art student, and she takes up a room to rent, though it’s clear she has little or no money, so she must find work.
Greta is highly naïve/ un-street smart- so she gets conned into going to a nudie photo shoot, and pulled in by a rich gent with S & M taste- running away from each in a panic. Then one day, while playing her guitar and singing to restaurant patrons, she catches the eye of Claude (Nicole Debonne), a rather horsey-looking, stern, and mysterious woman.
She heads home with Claude, who offers her food, booze, and a nice warm bath. Fairly soon, it becomes clear that Claude is a rich and lonely lesbian who is after Greta’s cherry. As things unfold, Claude becomes more controlling & manipulative- with Greta starting to feel very trapped.
One day, while reading a paper, she is noticed by steely-haired Mathias Decas( Yves Vincent) a pompous, rather intimidating, homosexual painter who wants to paint Greta. So, he gets Jean (Frederick Sakiss), his young, tight curly-haired assistant, to ask her to attend one of his painting sessions. From the off, it’s clear Greta is besotted by Jean- but will this help her situation, or make things much worse?
Frank is good in her lead role- moving from innocent & naïve, to manipulated and controlled, though to know what she wants as a woman. Debonne is ok, playing well enough, mysterious and troubling. Though I’d say Vincent is the most memorable here, as the overbearing gay painter.
On the fleshly side of things, we get softcore lovemaking, either shown through netted fabric, in red light, or hazed. It’s soundtrack by quite a vibe and piano-led easy listening jazz soundtrack. We get a few flashbacks, which move between sleazily amusing to rather bad taste- example of the first being when Jean visits a blunt & bossy old prostitute, and the second being a forest-bound rape which is scored by bright upbeat music.
I’d say you’ll be wanting to see Her and She and Him first and foremost for its drama and more campy, cheesy elements. Yes, the softcore elements are here, but they are largely low-key/ tame by today's standards- so if you're looking for all-out sleazy titillation, best look elsewhere.
This region B Blu Ray features an HD scan- it's largely nice, bright & clear, though we do get the occasional moments of thin line print damage. This is the English language dubbed version of the film, though there are a few moments when we suddenly switch into French, with nice, clear white subtitles.
On the new extras side, we have two things- Let’s Calm Down And Talk About Max Pécas (30.04), which is a deep dive into Mr Pécas' career from French film historian Christopher Bier. This is in French with English subtitles. And Max Pécas’ Grave ( 1.47), which, as its title suggests, is a visit to the director's grave in a Paris cemetery.
On the archive side of things, we have around nineteen minutes of additional scenes from the US version of the film. Alternative French title sequence, original US trailer, and image gallery.
Her and She and Him will appeal to those who enjoy campy & cheesy 70’s drama, with light softcore touches. And it’s wonderful to see 88 Films continuing with their French collection, and I look forward to checking out future additions to the series.