Anouk Aimée had been in movies for over a decade by the time that she appeared in "Lola", but this movie really showed moviegoers what she's made of. We see here the relationship between a French cabaret dancer (who, unlike the similarly named protagonist of the Kinks' song, both looks and talks like a woman) and two men: a Frenchman whom she knew years earlier, and a US sailor.

A previous reviewer noted similarities between this movie and Jacques Demy's later "Umbrellas of Cherbourg". True though that may be, this is the more interesting one: the subtlety, the camerawork and the complex characters make this a true example of highbrow cinema. I hope to see more of Demy's movies.

I guess that if I were to further reference the Kinks' song, I could say:

I saw the ma'amoiselle dancing on the stage I asked her her name and in her Gallic voice she said Lola L-O-L-A Lola Lo-lo-lo-lo-Lola

Whether or not you enjoy "Lola", the disc from Criterion includes a surprisingly large number of extras--including several of Demy's early short films.

The story is named for the main character, Lola (Anouk Aimée) who is a cabaret dancer who is either very promiscuous or a prostitute--you really don't know whether or not she charges for her services or is just incredibly friendly! She is, at the same time, hoping a lover from seven years ago returns to claim her and her child fathered by him. At the same time, several others in the film are also looking for love...such as an old friend of Lola's who is infatuated with her, an older lady who wants to capture this man for herself and her very, very stupid daughter who just turned 14 and is looking for love in all the wrong places.

The film is technically well made but is very little like his later masterpiece, "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg". It's competently made and mildly interesting but for me that was really all there was to it.

Roland Cassard (Marc Michel) is a bored young man with no ambitions. He runs into his ex Cecile (Anouk Aimée) who is now a cabaret dancer with the stage name Lola and a young son. Roland is still in love with her but she is not. Roland encounters Madame Desnoyers and her teen daughter Cecile in a store. Desnoyers invites him to Cecile's 14th birthday. He also gets involved in a smuggling scheme to South Africa. American sailor Frankie is taken with both Ceciles.

It's strange. Anouk feels so much older than Marc. It must be his immature character. It's aimless youth that is reserved more for one's early twenties but he is almost thirty. It's hard to root for him or feel for him in any way. Of course, age is somewhat an issue with this movie. The younger Cecile smokes but it's her relationship with Frankie which is the more disturbing. This might be a more interesting movie about her. I'm less interested in Roland.