A friendship and a marriage are destabilized when Pierre falls obsessively in love with Marie.
Story Structure — 4 Plot Phases
Friends and Financial Dependence
Benoît and Pierre are established as longtime friends with contrasting lives. Benoît is discreet and financially stable, while Pierre is a cultured literature professor who often borrows money from him.
Key Events
Longstanding Friendship — Benoît and Pierre are introduced as longtime friends. Characters: Benoît, Pierre
Benoît Works in Banking — Benoît is established as a discreet bank employee. Characters: BenoîtLocation: Bank
Benoît Has Money — Benoît is described as financially secure. Characters: Benoît
Pierre Teaches Literature — Pierre is introduced as a cultured literature professor. Characters: Pierre
Pierre Borrows Money — Pierre often borrows money from his financially stable friend. Characters: Pierre, Benoît
Personal Advertisement — Benoît and Marie meet through a personal advertisement. Characters: Benoît, Marie
A Marriage Meets Desire
Benoît and Marie meet through a personal advertisement and marry. On the wedding day, Pierre encounters Marie and falls in love with her.
Key Events
Personal Advertisement — Benoît and Marie meet through a personal advertisement. Characters: Benoît, Marie
Marriage Day Begins — The story reaches the day of Benoît and Marie's marriage. Characters: Benoît, Marie, PierreLocation: Wedding setting
Pierre Sees Marie — Pierre encounters Marie on the day of her wedding. Characters: Pierre, MarieLocation: Wedding setting
Love at the Wedding — Pierre falls in love with Marie on her wedding day. Characters: Pierre, MarieLocation: Wedding setting
Marie Resists — Marie initially appears resistant to Pierre's advances. Characters: Marie, Pierre
Pierre's Theatrical Charm — Pierre's theatrical personality contributes to his attraction. Characters: Pierre, Marie
Resistance and Attraction
Marie initially resists Pierre's advances, yet his theatrical charm affects her more than she admits. Her quiet attraction complicates the apparent stability of the marriage.
Key Events
Pierre's Theatrical Charm — Pierre's theatrical personality contributes to his attraction. Characters: Pierre, Marie
Marie Feels Drawn — Marie is less immune than she admits to Pierre's charm. Characters: Marie, Pierre
Unacknowledged Attraction — Marie harbors a quiet attraction she does not openly acknowledge. Characters: Marie, Pierre
Attraction Intensifies — Pierre's attraction to Marie grows beyond ordinary romantic interest. Characters: Pierre, Marie
Obsession Emerges — Pierre's attraction turns into an obsession with Marie. Characters: Pierre, Marie
Marriage Under Pressure — Pierre's pursuit begins to destabilize Benoît and Marie's marriage. Characters: Benoît, Marie, Pierre
The Triangle Takes Over
Pierre's attraction develops into an obsession with Marie. His pursuit destabilizes Benoît and Marie's marriage and tests his longstanding friendship with Benoît.
Key Events
Marriage Under Pressure — Pierre's pursuit begins to destabilize Benoît and Marie's marriage. Characters: Benoît, Marie, Pierre
Friendship Tested — Pierre's feelings for Benoît's wife test their longtime friendship. Characters: Benoît, Pierre
Triangle Takes Shape — The friendship and marriage become a complicated emotional triangle. Characters: Benoît, Marie, Pierre
Three-Way Disruption — Each protagonist becomes an external disruptive force in the triangle. Characters: Benoît, Marie, Pierre
Unresolved Emotional Balance — The film concludes as a story of friendship and romantic entanglement among the three protagonists. Characters: Benoît, Marie, Pierre
Story Breakdown
Contrasting Friends — Benoît and Pierre begin with a longstanding friendship but occupy sharply different social and professional positions.
Benoît's Stability — Benoît is discreet, works in a bank, and has money.
Pierre's Dependence — Pierre is a theatrical literature professor who often borrows from Benoît.
Unexpected Meeting — Benoît and Marie meet through a personal advertisement, creating the couple at the center of the story.
Personal Advertisement — The advertisement connects Benoît and Marie.
New Couple — Their meeting leads to marriage.
Wedding Day Disruption — Pierre's romantic crisis begins precisely when Benoît and Marie marry.
Marriage Ceremony — The plot identifies this as the day of Benoît and Marie's marriage.
Pierre Notices Marie — Pierre falls in love with Marie on her wedding day.
Reluctant Attraction — Marie initially rejects Pierre's advances, although his charm affects her beneath the surface.
Initial Resistance — Marie appears resistant to Pierre's advances.
Hidden Response — Marie is less insensitive to Pierre's charm than she admits.
Growing Obsession — Pierre's attraction intensifies until it becomes an obsession with Marie.
Theatrical Charm — Pierre's cultured and theatrical personality contributes to his appeal.
Obsessive Pursuit — His attraction shifts into an obsession that destabilizes the surrounding relationships.
Friendship and Marriage Strained — The three protagonists become an emotionally disruptive triangle involving friendship, marriage, and desire.
Marital Instability — Pierre's pursuit destabilizes Benoît and Marie's marriage.
Friendship Tested — Pierre's obsession with Benoît's wife tests their longtime friendship.
A triangle: love, obsession, and choice. Pierre, a ladies' man who has little cash and no fixed residence, describes his best friend Benoît as the world's oldest 32-year-old. The shy, well-employed Benoît's life changes when he answers the personal ad of Marie, a 25-year-old who restores paintings. He's attracted to her and she likes his steady calm and his honest attention. They're soon a couple, and they include Pierre in their dinners, outings, and trips. What will happen when Pierre realizes that he too is in love with Marie?
