This is a very simple and engaging french film. A very shy young pianist moves to her own apartment that's separated by a paper thin wall from another one (in another building) inhabited by a hermit (almost) game designer.The plot is thin, but the acting's great and you really become interested in the characters. Also quite a wry comment on how our very "open" society in effect isolates people by the overuse of gadgets (read smartphones).Anyhow, the main characters find that to have an essential connection one doesn't need to be in front of another person.Secondary actors are also great and there are many funny and endearing moments.Really should be seen...

I am not going to write what the film is about ... because I don't want to spoil it for anyone else. Bored to tears with inane, soulless action movies - I want something that either makes me think, or makes me feel good.So, all I am going to say is that this is the best film I have seen for years. No cops, no car chases, no daft stunts - just a charming story told in a way that completely involves you (well, it did me).I cannot recommend it highly enough. I saw Girl on a Train on Saturday and fell asleep in the first half hour. Blind Date I didn't want to end.

Full disclosure, 2016 hasn't been a great romancing year for me, so I get easily irked by too much quirky stuff or unsubstantiated love kernels. And for the most part, easy-breezy romcoms tend to consist of a string of those. So it's at least partly my fault that Blind Date didn't stick.Then again, it felt like all the creators were working with was a concept and a final scene: the former bordering on the absurd, the latter more romantic than I was set up to expect, by the look of things. Everything else was filled in with a competent, but cloggy and predictable plot and endearingly cardboard-y characters. OK, that's harsh. The leads have a tinge of something special about them, both reclusive introverts, passionate creatives - playfully nicknamed Machine and Machin. Separated by a thin and not at all soundproof wall, they get to organizing their lives around one another and ultimately fall for each other. The secret sauce lies in them not having seen each other and therefore being able to focus on the essence of what's being conveyed. At times, the two even have enough personality to be more than cardboard cut-outs. Instead of spending more time with them, we're served with two second-hand supporting characters, the adulterous sister (or was it friend?) of 'Machine' and the overly supportive friend of 'Machin'. The problem with these two is that they bring nothing to the story. Instead, they are classic counter-points - the rebellious matron to the timid girl, the happy-go-lucky fellow to the misanthrope. This makes them superfluous, because no time is dedicated to truly fleshing them out enough for anything they do to even matter.Coming back to our protagonists, their purpose is to free one another of what's tying them down, while also coming together. For one, it's a perfectionist obsession with the creation brain-teaser games; for the other, it's a perfectionist obsession with playing the piano. It fits, we do like fixing in others what we can't fix in ourselves. This takeaway, so common to romantic comedies, is the bane of my existence. To its defense, Blind Date tries to nuance the matter, as one might find motivation in another, but still needs to independently commit to change. Even so, there's just an excessive amount of wish fulfillment about the movie, as too much is left unexplored to really make it worthwhile. Luckily, the bits of Chopin scattered throughout help out.People seem to like the flick, so with my disclaimer in mind, take what you will out of this review. Yet I cannot help being disappointed, because while it does feel authentic at points, it predominantly appears trite. Maybe I should just lower my pretentious romcom bar a notch or two.

A heart-warming, life affirming, romantic comedy.It follows the lovely Mélanie Bernier, and Clovis Cornillac.He's a miserable misanthrope who enjoys his own space, whilst she's a shy pianist.Forced to 'live together' as their adjoining apartments are separated by 'tissue paper' thin walls.It's really an updated, more touching version of "Sleepless in Seattle".The major advantage of the plot is their common passion for music. This brings them closer whilst it also plays with the standard rom-com formula.The secondary characters are equally funny and drive the comedy along. Lilou Fogli (screenwriter of this film and wife of Clovis) is fantastic in the role of sister Mélanie Bernier, talkative, funny and uninhibited. Philippe Duquesne also plays a gruff whilst endearing friend.Ultimately it's not a film that you'll think you've seen this all before, it's refreshing, funny and classy.I'd recommend it!