Seven Capital Sins Reviews

An enjoyable, light-hearted episode film that combines the talents of many top New Wave directors with the seven capital sins--Anger, Envy, Gluttony, Lust, Laziness, Pride, and Greed. The most enjoyable skit is De Broca's "Gluttony," a tale of a family driving to a funeral. They stop to eat once too often and arrive too late for mass, but just in time for the funeral banquet. Vadim's "Pride" also packs a satiric punch in its telling of an adulterous wife, Vlady, who decides not to run off with her lover when she discovers that her husband, Aumont, is having an affair. More important than her lover is the need to defend her household and marriage from another woman. Godard's "Laziness" is very matter-of-fact in its story of a famous movie idol, Constantine (playing himself), who is too lazy to pay attention to the sexual advances of young starlet Mirel. Chabrol's "Greed" has a group of young men pooling their money in a raffle for a high-priced prostitute. A shy virgin wins the drawing and is befriended by the hooker, who thoughtfully refunds his portion of the money. Demy's "Lust" is set at the usual Parisian sidewalk cafe with two men talking about the girls around them. One of them, however, is lucky enough to be able to see through the girls' clothes. Molinaro's "Envy" has a chambermaid falling in love with a millionaire who spends the evening at her hotel. He takes her away, but later she returns and is jealous of the new chambermaid's romance with a coworker. The least interesting is Dhomme's "Anger," which occurs one strange day in France when flies pop up in a number of bowls of soup around town. The crazed Frenchmen get so angry that they destroy the whole country. As with so many compilation films, SEVEN CAPITAL SINS is quick-moving and has a couple of gems ("Gluttony" and "Pride"), a couple of average segments ("Laziness," "Greed," and "Lust"), and a couple of dogs ("Envy" and "Anger"). (In French; English subtitles.)