Don Juan Movie Review

The story of Don Juan has been made into some bizarre and unique films before, but this 1998 French rendition is one of the least compelling I've seen.

The problems begin with the casting, with actor Jacques Weber taking the starring role. (Weber, a long-time French actor, also wrote the script and directed -- so maybe it's not so much a casting problem as it is an ego problem.) Weber is about as far from Don Juan as I can imagine, and he comes across as an overgrown, geriatric, hairy monster of sorts. Why would a beauty like Emmanuelle Béart be distraught when Juan packs up and leaves town for greener pastures? Hell if I know.

The bulk of the film concerns Juan's wooing of women in a Spanish fishing village, with Penélope Cruz and Ariadna Gil making weak cases for his heart, obviously sensing the problem mentioned in the prior paragraph. Why do these ladies -- particularly the radiant Gil -- care about this boorish interloper? Hell if I know.

Well, at least when it's all over Juan will have his faithful sidekick to help him along. You get the feeling that if they'd just let the film go on for 10 more minutes, we could have witnessed Sganarelle changing Juan's adult diapers.