Charlotte and Veronique are flatmates. One day they both go out separately and take lunch alone by the same park. Charlotte is approached and chatted up by a guy called Patrick and they agree to meet the next day. Later, Veronique is also approached by the same man and chatted up. When they get home they talk about their days and are amused to find that they both met men called Patrick on the same day but their respective beaus seem so very different they conclude that that must be the only connection.
Godard's first short film set in Paris is also memorable for being the only time thus far that he has directed a film from someone else's script. The film is essentially a slight comedy about two women who meet the same guy without realising it and then go to meet each other's 'Patrick'. As a narrative it isn't amazing but it is enjoyable in its delivery if not its final substance. The script is well observed and is fun to watch as the two women are chatted up in an amusing and natural fashion. It may not end as well as I would have liked or have left me with any lasting impression but I enjoyed it while it was on and will come back to it at some point to rewatch it.
The cast do very well to deliver the dialogue as if they were really these characters. Collette and Berger are good when separate and it is only when they share the screen in their flat that they come off rather flat and not as natural as they were alone. However I have never lived in a girl flat so maybe the giggling is how they are but they seemed realer when resisting being chatted up (which says more about my contact with women perhaps!?). Brialy is good value and plays his character(s) well throughout the film.
Overall this is an interesting film for several reasons but it is also quite an enjoyable one. The script is natural even if it hasn't got the strongest of narratives or best of conclusions and the cast do well to deliver it in a manner that is believable and natural making Godard's short worth seeing.
