Suspicious minds

Un Couple épatant (An amazing couple)

(2002)

Unlike last night's Cavale, this portion of Lucas Belvaux's multigeneric trilogy cannot stand alone: while minor loose ends may actually enhance the appeal of a noir thriller, in a sex farce (or, rather, sexless farce) like this, questions like why Jeanne has been arrested and who the guy at the chalet is would simply be distractions if you didn't have the other parts to refer to.

As it is, the lightness of this weakest third is nearly unbearable. Alain, of the titular twosome, is about to undergo minor surgery, but he has somehow convinced himself that he has terminal cancer. His attempt to keep the truth from his wife, Cécile, makes her suspect that he's having an affair, and her behavior under that misapprehension makes him suspect . . . oh, you get the picture. It's cute and silly and pleasant, but it's definitely the short side of the triangle. Or at least I hope so: I guess I won't be sure of that until I refresh my memory of Après la vie.

I should mention at some point that the films were positioned in a different order in the United States than in Europe, but Belvaux held that that made no difference, and I'm taking him at his word: the first time I saw them, I saw Après first, then Cavale, and ended with Couple. If I watch them all four more times over the next few years, I'll try out each possible combination.