Change moi ma vie (2001)
Directed by Liria Bégéja

Film Review

Fanny Ardant and Roschdy Zem are not an obvious pairing for a romantic drama, but both actors succeed in rendering the incredible credible and bring emotional depth and poignancy to this stylish but largely predictable film from Liria Bégéja.  The film derives much of its impact from its use of contrasts, and often these are taken to painful extremes (Ardant and Zem being a case in point).  Despite this, the drama holds together well, primarily through Fanny Ardant's moving portrayal of a woman who cannot quite put her life back together after a failed romance.  Roschdy Zem is underused, or rather abused, by a script that slips too easily into caricature, but he still manages to make his character believable and sympathetic. For all its faults, Change-moi ma vie is an emotionally engaging drama whose impact derives almost entirely from the darkly introspective performances of two exceptional actors.

Film Synopsis

Nina is an actress in her late forties who is struggling to find work after her return to Paris.  She has spent several years in Russia with her lover, but when he left her she decided to return to France and resume her once promising career.  Feeling rejected because no one will employ her she takes an overdose of pills and collapses in a public park.  The only person to come to her aid is a young Algerian man named Sami.  A former athlete who once had dreams of becoming an Olympic champion, he is now reduced to earning his crust as a transvestite prostitute.  Seeing that they have much in common , Nina and Sami find they have a fondness for one another which may soon develop into love.  They make a pact: Nina will persevere in finding work as an actress, providing Sami turns his back on drugs and prostitution and instead commits himself to becoming a professional athlete.  It isn't long before Sami realises he will never be able to realise his dreams, and so he falls back on drugs...