Rating: 
Summary: Romantic, charming, funny; in short, irresistible!
Review: There is no other movie in my collection that gets watched as often as this one. The story line is quite simple but the acting by the entire cast makes every line and every situation seem fresh and funny, even after scores of viewings.I am not generally a Meg Ryan fan but this movie shows her broad range of abilities, from physical comedy (the run in with the dessert cart, or suffering from the ill effects of lactose intolerance) to subtle poignancy (watch her facial expressions change in the very last scene on the airplane). Smaller roles are exquisitely played, from the always incomparable Jean Reno as a French policeman to the fine character actor who plays the concierge at the Hotel George V in Paris - an absolute gem of a performance in every respect and a one person commentary on the entire French persona. The French countryside is beautifully photographed, especially the wine country that is so central to the plot, and there are lovely glimpses of Paris as well. But for me the performance by Kevin Kline tops everything. His character is both incredibly complex and laugh out loud funny in this movie, and also wonderfully sensual. From one scene to the next we understand more and more what he thinks and feels. Bet you can't watch it just once! Bet you'll start quoting sections of dialogue at the drop of a hat! Bet you buy the first rate soundtrack (includes Kevin Kline singing in French).
Rating: 
Summary: Exactly why Meg Ryan is a movie star¿¿¿¿..
Review: The premise is a bit far-fetched, but the French scenery is beautiful, although Kevin Kline's French accent is not. But watch this film anyway, as Meg Ryan earns every buck and almost single-handedly carries this film. Don't get me wrong, Kevin Kline is fine (but ooh is that accent annoying) and Tim Hutton's destructive tendencies are minimized here. There is a wonderful chemistry between the two principals, the story allows each to pursue their own goals throughout, but of course we know where they'll be in the end. And we would want it no other way. How can you not love Ms. Ryan? Her character's trademark seems to be their availability, and it serves her well here. Kline plays the con-with-the-heart like its second hand to him, he's not yet to old for us to appreciate the mischievous gleam in his eyes. Nice little romance, what's not to love?
Rating:
Summary: It's been awhile since I've seen it but...
Review: From what I recall it deserves a five star rating. I watched this in French class and I remember thinking oh boy another sucktastic school movie and was pleasently suprised. At first I doodled, but you can't help but be pulled into the story and the delightful Meg Ryan. I soon was completely involved with storyline and loved every minute of it, and I for once didn't even mind the pretictable ending. A movie that is worth renting, watching, and then purchasing. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect name for a nearly perfect movie
Review: Meg Ryan's character is afraid to fly, so she can't join her Canadian fiancee (played by Timothy Hutton) in Paris for a convention. But when he telephones to say he has met a "goddess" and is reconsidering their relationship, she forces herself onto the plane, where she meets the oh-so-gallic Luc (Kevin Kline). She doesn't know it yet, but she and Luc have some unfinished business. "French Kiss" is a perfect title for this Continental tease of a comedy that combines elements of romance, screwball comedy, and a touch of international intrigue. Ryan and Kline seemed perfectly cast even if he is a good deal older than she. It isn't a magnificent movie, but it's quite a good one and much better than the critics would have us believe. A welcome souffle for any fans of Ryan, Kline, or for romantics anywhere.
Rating:
Summary: French Kiss - ***1/2 Stars
Review: United States, 1995
U.S. Release Date: 5/5/95
Running Length: 1:51
MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Sexual innuendo, profanity)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cast: Meg Ryan, Kevin Kline, Timothy Hutton, Jean Reno, Susan Anbeh
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Producers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Meg Ryan, and Kathryn F. Galan
Screenplay: Adam Brooks
Cinematography: Owen Roizman
Music: James Newton Howard
U.S. Distributor: Twentieth Century Fox Another year, another Meg Ryan romantic comedy. In 1994, it was I.Q. In 1993, it was Sleepless in Seattle. In 1990, Joe Versus the Volcano; in 1989, When Harry Met Sally. And the thing is, no matter how she wears her hair, she always plays basically the same character -- bubbly and energetic yet repressed. That description fits her latest on-screen personae, French Kiss' Kate. But the problem is that having played the type so often, Ryan has gone on auto-pilot. This time around, the effervescence is flat and the likableness is forced. Kate is champagne that has stood out too long. Not so with the male lead in this Lawrence Kasdan-directed film. Kevin Kline, who won an Oscar as Otto in A Fish Called Wanda, brings the same degree of comic aptitude to Luc, a good-hearted scoundrel. With a flair and enthusiasm that everyone else involved with this production seems to lack, Kline very nearly single-handedly saves this film. Almost, but not quite. They say it takes two to tango, and with Meg Ryan's moves so much more mechanical than those of her partner, this pair engages in a decidedly clumsy dance. The storyline takes the same old romantic comedy formula, bends it a little (but not too much -- Kasdan apparently doesn't want his audience to feel uncomfortable by facing new territory), and adds a few passages of decent dialogue. There is one scene early in the film with Kate and Luc discussing kissing that's noteworthy for its sincerity and intelligence. This isn't Kieslowski or Rohmer, but it's about the deepest one can reasonably expect from this type of motion picture. As the curtain rises on French Kiss, Kate is engaged to Charlie (played with absolutely no charisma by Timothy Hutton). They're the perfect couple: boring, adoring, and ready to settle down. Then Charlie heads off to Paris, falls madly in love with a French beauty (Susan Anbeh, who looks great but doesn't do much real acting), and calls Kate to cancel the wedding. Distraught and determined to win back her fiance, she overcomes her fear of flying, gets on a plane, and heads off to Europe. Sitting next to her during the flight is Luc, an unkempt Frenchman with a stolen necklace in his pocket and a plan to use Kate to smuggle it through customs. Of course, problems occur, the necklace gets lost, and Luc and Kate fall in love. Lifeless performances by Ryan and Hutton aside, this movie might have been more endearing had it spent less time on the inane jewelry theft story and more time developing something other than a cliched relationship between the two leads. French Kiss isn't all bad -- it has its share of mild humor, and the scenery in Paris and Cannes is often more photogenic than the actors. However, the delicate air of romance that often makes this sort of film worthwhile is absent. French Kiss does it by the numbers, not from the heart.
Rating:
Summary: I Love Paris...
Review: Romantic comedies need that perfect couple. Once you've got Meg Ryan, you're more than halfway there. Kevin Kline steps up to the plate here, with enchanting results. Kline's stereotypical Frenchman (Luc) is as convincing (that accent!) as he is funny. His uber-casual, morally lax attitude is well complemented by Ryan's uptight, loquacious American/wannabe-Canadian (Kate). The movie rolls along at a merry pace - from Canada to Paris to Nice and Provence, all with distinctive, eclectic music. The locations are beautiful and serve nicely as foils for the wacky partnership of Luc and Kate, as do the songs (in French and English). Check out the end credits when Kevin Kline sings "La Mer." The chemistry between Luc and Kate works like it does in screwball comedies - a lot of bickering sexual tension - but somehow the best and most revealing scenes are the ones where there is no dialogue (Luc and his vine, lost in Paris, train to Nice, Luc's family, dancing). The script is a little lacking, but Ryan and Kline are charming during these quiet moments. As you can imagine, with all this dualism of French and English, there is a lot of national humor - but I think the best summary of the movie is when Kate, who has lost everything (money, love, passport), wisely realizes, "I am without country." Of course, she means this literally, but that wistfulness conveys more. The differences between nationalities become irrelevant when it's really about fulfillment and dreams, which aren't bound by country lines.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect name for a nearly perfect movie
Review: Meg Ryan's character is afraid to fly, so she can't join her Canadian fiancee (played by Timothy Hutton) in Paris for a convention. But when he telephones to say he has met a "goddess" and is reconsidering their relationship, she forces herself onto the plane, where she meets the oh-so-gallic Luc (Kevin Kline). She doesn't know it yet, but she and Luc have some unfinished business. "French Kiss" is a perfect title for this Continental tease of a comedy that combines elements of romance, screwball comedy, and a touch of international intrigue. Ryan and Kline seemed perfectly cast even if he is a good deal older than she. It isn't a magnificent movie, but it's quite a good one and much better than the critics would have us believe. A welcome souffle for any fans of Ryan, Kline, or for romantics anywhere.
Rating:
Summary: Predictably adorable
Review: In my never ending endeavor to evaluate all the adorable movie stars (I'm sorry, I can't help myself) I've seen yet another Meg Ryan movie and I must say I'm beginning to be smitten. She is just so darn cute. And ageless. And perky. And actually a wee bit sexy when she gets in the right mood. And anyway since the movie takes place mostly in France (the stomping ground of my partially misspent youth) the scenery is nostalgic, the title is cute, and believe me, the food is delicious. But what carries this movie is a beguiling performance by Kevin Kline and his very oo, la, la French accent. I also liked the concierge who takes Meg's 100-Franc note (worth about twenty bucks) as his God-given concierge right with nothing more than a belated, merci you vile American touriste. Okay, I have to confess. I have a love/hate relationship with Meg. I just want to take her home and tuck her into bed, but all she cares about is being cute on screen and teasing me. Director Lawrence Kasdan (Body Heat 1981, Anne Tyler's The Accidental Tourist 1989, writing credits with George Lucas sagas, etc.) has a few jokes with the nearly all female theater audience and their drag-along beaux. (Actually this video is currently being viewed on the couch across the nation by Roseanne Barr and John Goodman look-alikes with Roseanne making sarcastic remarks about Meg's eyeshadow and scrawny physique while Goodman chortles with squinty eyes as he anticipates the action to come après le flick.) I especially liked the vast vineyard (Meg is drooling) that Kevin DOES NOT HAVE due to his wild and crazy ways (he says, but shows it to her anyway). I mean, RESOURCES are what a real woman wants in a man, dodo brain. What are you doing, playing hard to get? Anyway, as all romance movie fans know, boy meets girl (cute), boy and girl cannot get it on just yet for 1001 wacky reasons, and finally boy gets girl or actually girl gets boy, and boy turns out to be worth getting as he naturally comes up with beaucoup des ressources of a very special kind. Etc. See this for Kevin Kline, an underrated actor who has a lot of fun behind the five o'clock shadows and the French pastry while proving he can Can Can with the best of them.
Rating: 
Summary: Interminable, artificial, cloying SLOP
Review: A limp half-hearted attempt at a romantic screwball comedy that just doesn't work on any level. God knows Meg Ryan is cute enough, and she had a slew of other successful romantic comedies under her belt at this point, so she should have been able to waltz her way through "French Kiss". I guess director Laurence Kasdan just really dropped the ball here. Some very bad decisions on Ms. Ryans hair (which looks like someone hacked it up with garden clippers) and oversized, mannish clothes which are headed towards Annie Hall but end up making her look like Ellen DeGeneres, i.e., sexless instead of gamine. You also wonder until the last couple scenes if she was hiding a weight gain, or even pregnant...why cover up an attractive actress to this extreme a degree? But no, it's just bad costumes. The usually attractive and funny Kevin Kline is very awkward here. He's working a half-way decent French accent, but it feels like he is straining. The character is poorly developed and not really likeable..."Luc" never reforms ("Kate" has to return his stolen diamond necklace to save him from jail), so we don't see a sea change in his criminal character. When Kate gives Luc her $45,000 life savings, accumulated for her marriage to Tim Hutton, you have to shake your head and wonder if she will ever see any of it again. It just isn't too believable that you would give this amount of money to a near stranger and leave yourself totally broke. I couldn't help but wonder when Gerard Depardeiu turned this part down, why they didn't get a genuine French actor like the wonderful Jean Reno (here in a minor part as a police detective) for the part of "Luc"...he would have been far better, genuinely French, and not stereotyped. But he's not Hollywood handsome like Mr. Kline, and this movie goes for the lowest common denominator. The comedy is very low-brow with a dopey theme around lactose intolerance and a really terrible scene where Meg Ryan (trying to spy on her ex-fiance) trips clumsily into a cartfull of gooey pastries. Awful, Three Stooges stuff. Worst of all is the ending. The least you expect in this type of film is a big romantic pay off at the end, where the characters discover that they love each other after all. Not here. The movie just runs out of gas (or maybe film)...it feels like Kasdan just had no clear idea of how to end things. Luc appears magically on Kate's return flight to the US...next thing you know, French music is playing and they are hugging in his new (paid for by her) vineyard. (Oh for the days of pre-9/11 when you could even fantasize about barging onto a plane without a ticket.) Adding to the general lackluster lameness...several scenes are totally in French with NO subtitles. These scenes appear to have some importance to the plot and while we can roughly guess the subject, it is just plain annoying not to know the actual dialogue. I don't know real estate prices in the South of France, but my instinct tells me that $45,000 would not buy a vineyard with a charming old house. Probably not even a decent downpayment. (If it IS enough money, I am packing my bags immediately.) To me, movies like "French Kiss" are not romantic at all. You don't feel any connection to the characters, there are no "surprises", you never feel those heart tugs that maybe they will NOT get together and you get no catharctic release when they finally DO get together. This is further proof (as if it were needed) that it's THE SCRIPT, STUPID. You need a great, clever script...even more than the actors. Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline are basically decent performers, but they have zero chemistry here. Only good point - so little sex or erotic charge that you can happily watch this with smaller children (if they can stand the boredom) or your great grandma.
Rating: 
Summary: Follow Tom Keogh's Editorial Review
Review: This movie fails in establishing a story and characters one could warmly relate to. I mean Meg's character behaves too juvenile (to put it mildly) while the other lead character has no charisma even though the screenwriter tries to make him look like an expert in communicating with a flight-shy and awkward-with-men woman.
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