Manon 70 (Blu-ray Review)
Director
Jean AurelRelease Date(s)
1968 (August 11, 2026)Studio(s)
Les Films Corona/Panda Film/Roxy Film/Transinter Films (Kino Lorber Studio Classics)- Film/Program Grade: B-
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: B-
Review
A real curio, Manon 70 (1968) stars Catherine Deneuve as the beautiful but amoral (not immoral) Manon, who maintains a luxurious lifestyle by contentedly sleeping with various wealthy men. At the time of its release and perhaps even now, some might find feminist, emancipated woman themes in Deneuve’s character, but today the film seems extraordinarily dated, politically incorrect, and even quaint. It’s interesting throughout, but every major character in the picture is manipulative (or easily manipulated) and/or obsessive, and none is appealing or relatable.
At the airport for a flight from Tokyo to Paris, television journalist François des Greux (Sami Frey) eyes Manon (Deneuve) and is so instantly taken with her that he upgrades his ticket so that he can join her in First Class. During the flight, however, all her attentions are directed at an apparent lover (Chris Avram) seated next to her, though once in Paris, Manon bolts from his car, joining François in his taxi and the two become instant lovers.
Their relationship quickly sours as François, trying to keep up with Manon’s high-living, burns through his expense account and loses his lucrative job. She introduces him to Jean-Paul (Jean-Claude Brialy), Manon’s pimp-like brother, who sets her up with rich Simon (Paul Hubschmid) and one morning Manon runs off with him for a Mediterranean cruise on his yacht. Bitter, François flies to Stockholm, beginning a sexually-charged relationship with another blonde, married Kristina (Kristina Ohlsen), causing a jealous Manon to creepily track François down.
But soon after their reconciliation, Manon is off again with a new lover, wealthy American Ravaggi (Robert Webber), a man so paranoid he has a private detective follow Manon and later bugs his own mansion. And not without good reason: by this point, François begins masquerading as Manon’s brother, they conspiring to resume their sexual relationship the minute Ravaggi’s back is turned.
On the plus side, Catherine Deneuve is in her element; she was always best, at least during this part of her career, playing emotionally detached, icy blondes, often self-absorbed characters without much empathy for others. She’s undeniably beautiful, and director Jean Aurel’s camera lovingly shows off the Great Beauty and her singularly ’60s fashions. The men all give good performances, and it’s interesting to see actors Paul Hubschmid (The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms) and Robert Webber, particularly the latter, in heavily American-accented French, playing exactly the kind of part he later specialized on myriad ’70s American TV shows like Cannon and The Rockford Files. The film’s Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous-like settings are also visually appealing.
Manon 70, however, has some very outdated ideas of male-female relationships. François, for instance, rapes Manon in a bathtub scene, and in a bit of incredible political incorrectness, she seems to enjoy it. Further, François doesn’t hesitate in slapping Manon around occasionally, asserting his manhood, or something. These actions don’t endear François as a victim of Manon’s frivolous, superficial, and even cold-hearted nature.
There’s also a whiff of an incestuous relationship between Manon and her brother, Jean-Paul. Though only vaguely hinted at, theirs is a bit too touchy-feely for comfort. Later, when François masquerades as Manon’s brother, there’s also the slightest suggestion that perhaps Jean-Paul might not be a biological brother after all, but another pathetic former lover, though I could be reading things into Manon 70 not intended.
Romanian director Aurel had an odd career. Besides Manon 70, he was also responsible for Les Femmes (1969) a similar sex comedy starring Brigitte Bardot, a terrible film far worse than this, though Kino’s ghastly video transfer, atypically as bad as the film, didn’t help matters. Yet, conversely, he co-wrote the screenplays for some of François Truffaut’s last films: Love on the Run (1979), The Woman Next Door (1981), and Confidentially Yours (aka Finally, Sunday!, 1983).
Licensed from StudioCanal, Kino’s Blu-ray presents the film in 1.66:1 widescreen. The video transfer is excellent, presumably drawn from the original camera negative judging by its sharpness. Colors are accurate and blacks and contrast all look good. The DTS-HD Master Audio (2.0) is likewise fine, and optional English subtitles are provided on this Region “A”-locked disc.
The lone supplement is a new audio commentary by Howard S. Berger and Travis Woods.
Not exactly good, Manon 70 is the kind of movie that people in the 1960s who never went to French movies imagined them to be like. It’s racy with fleeting nudity here and there, and its characters revel in a kind of preposterous sexual liberation that now seems rather foolish. But, to its credit, it’s not dull, just very, very dated.
- Stuart Galbraith IV