🎬 [REVIEW – FILM INTRODUCTION]
HOW MUCH DO YOU LOVE ME? (2005)
(Original title: Combien tu m’aimes?)
A strange love song about money, desire, and the longing to be loved

✨ OVERVIEW

• Director & Screenwriter: Bertrand Blier – a legendary French filmmaker, Oscar winner for Get Out Your Handkerchiefs
• Starring: Monica Bellucci, Bernard Campan, Gérard Depardieu
• Genre: Drama – Romance – Dark Comedy
• Language: French
• Runtime: 90 minutes
• Release Year: 2005
• Notable Award: César Award for Best Supporting Actress (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi)

💬 THE STORY: BUYING LOVE – OR BUYING A DREAM?

François is a lonely middle-aged office worker in Paris. One day, fortune smiles upon him: he wins the lottery. In a moment of desperation and yearning, he walks into a red-light bar in Pigalle and makes a bold proposition to Daniela – a stunning sex worker (played by Monica Bellucci):

“Come live with me. I’ll pay you €100,000 a month—just to love me.”

Surprisingly, she agrees.

And thus begins a strange and haunting relationship—where money seems capable of buying love, or at least the illusion of it. But nothing is ever that simple. Daniela carries a past, obligations, and a husband—who turns out to be a ruthless gangster (played by Gérard Depardieu).

From there, the story drifts beyond realism, into a space between dream and delusion. François finds himself not just buying love, but inviting destruction. And the viewer is pulled into a world where the boundaries between reality and fantasy begin to dissolve.

🎭 STYLE & THEMATIC DEPTH

Bertrand Blier doesn’t tell stories in a conventional way. He shapes cinema like a cubist painter—where time, memory, and inner thoughts intertwine unpredictably. How Much Do You Love Me? is a dark comedy, laced with surrealism and poetic melancholy.

The film poses a provocative question: Can love be bought? And if it can—does it bring happiness?

In a world where emotions are easily traded for comfort, this film becomes an intimate and daring reflection on modern loneliness and desire. Many viewers will see a part of themselves in François—a man who doesn’t seek sex, but something far deeper: the longing to be chosen, to be loved.

🌟 PERFORMANCES & CINEMATOGRAPHY

• Monica Bellucci: The soul of the film. Her beauty and mystique aren’t just sensual—they symbolize a kind of unreachable, idealized love.
• Bernard Campan: Brilliant as François, capturing the quiet despair and aching vulnerability of a man who dares to buy affection.
• Gérard Depardieu: Though his screen time is limited, his presence is heavy—portraying a man of power, also imprisoned by love.

Visually, the film is rich with symbolism. Its lighting and color tone echo romantic sadness and emotional surrealism—a true tribute to French auteur cinema.

📌 WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS FILM

• A bold, artistic piece of French cinema from one of its most respected directors
• Monica Bellucci in one of her most complex and haunting roles
• A script full of emotional and philosophical layers—thought-provoking and unpredictable
• Ideal for those who enjoy films that challenge linear storytelling and moral clarity

🔎 FINAL THOUGHTS:

How Much Do You Love Me? is not an easy film. It’s not made to comfort—but to provoke, to unsettle, and to leave questions echoing long after the credits roll.

💭 Love can’t be bought—but maybe it can be rented. For how long? And what remains after—the tenderness, or the void?

🎞️ What would you say if someone asked you: “How much do you love me?” Would you have the courage to answer honestly?
Watch the film and find your own answer.

#CombienTuMaimes #HowMuchDoYouLoveMe #MonicaBellucci #BertrandBlier #FrenchCinema #EuropeanFilm #ArthouseCinema #FilmReview #LoveAndMoney