Fun from beginning to end. This is a carefree sex comedy, that treats extra-marital flirtations and affairs in a lighthearted manner. The story revolves around two couples. Paul and Suzanne Giraud live a quiet and orderly upper class life in Paris. Maurice and Georgette Lalle are dancers who live across the street from them.At the beginning of the film, the Lalles are half-heartedly and hilariously practicing an "Aztec" dance. When Suzanne sees Maurice from her window without his shirt on, she gets so titillated that she feigns outrage and has Paul walk over to complain. It's Georgette, an old flame of Paul's, who greets him at the door. This chance greeting sets off an affair between Paul and Georgette, and a serious flirtation (perhaps an affair too?) between Maurice and Suzanne. These two couples, who are each experiencing their own versions of the marital doldrums, are reinvigorated by the other. The best way that I can describe this film is that it's like a glass of champagne: effervescent and bubbly. It delicious. Nothing is overstated, and there is a lot of innuendo. I've never seen a walking stick do so much heavy lifting to get the point across. There is a fantastic party scene where the seemingly straight-laced Dr. Paul Giraud enters a dance competition with Georgette, dancing the Charleston alongside hundreds of other party goers. It is one of the best party scenes I've ever seen on film. The film is only a little over an hour long and it leaves you wanting more. I loved Monte Blue as Dr. Paul Giraud, who plays him as both sophisticated and dopey, a winning combination. Lilyan Tashman plays Georgette as a fun and zany married flapper, who is not afraid to go for what she wants. I just adored them. I watched this at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, at the Castro Theater, with musical accompaniment by Stephen Horne and Frank Bockius. 52 Years in 52 Weeks: 2026
