Romain Duris

Audrey Tautou

Cécile de France

Kelly Reilly

Sandrine Holt

Flore Bonaventura

Jochen Hägele

Benoît Jacquot

Martine Demaret

Li Jun Li

Dominique Besnehard

Zinedine Soualem

Peter Hermann

Jason Kravits

Vanessa Guide

Kyan Khojandi

Cédric Klapisch

Alex Kruz

Luis Vega

Pablo Mugnier-Jacob

Margaux Mansart

Amin Djakliou

Clara Abbasi

Sharrieff Pugh

Peter McRobbie

Byron Jennings

Alison Arboux

Loreleï Aubry

Natalia Segura

Xavier Alcan

Maud Wyler

Catrina Ganey

Adrian Martinez

Jose Soto

Shuya Chang

Howah Hung

Phil Nee

Anna Berger

Larry Fessenden

Joe Stefko

Yinka Adeboyeku

Kenneth Maharaj

Antoine Garceau

Damon Michael Gordon

Michael Che

Dominic Colón

Ryiah Rene Suazo

Yelena Shmulenson

Allen Lewis Rickman

Dylan Chalfy

Victor Colicchio

J.D. Williams

Jenny L. Saldaña

Wang Yinuo

Celia Au

Brian Cheeks

Alexander Jameson

Mia Sinclair Jenness

Stephen Lin

Niyi Oni

Anna Rapp

Tyler Rapp

Will Tomi

Natasha Braier

Anne-Sophie Bion

Arlette Zylberberg

Rachel Geary

Pierre Olivier Persin

Jérémy Babinet

Nicolas Mazet

Gaëtan David

Jeanne Millet

Philippe Penot

Mark DeSimone

Ric Schnupp

Christopher Fulton

Adenike Wright

Matteo De Cosmo

Ann Goulder

Marie Cheminal

Carol Cuddy

Roshelle Berliner

April Schuller

Lee Harper

Raphaël Benoliel

Cyril Holtz

Mandy Lyons

André Logie

Gayle Keller

David Schlesinger

Buzz Koenig

Valérie Rozanes

Frédéric Marin

Anne Moralis

Cyril Moisson

Christophe Minck

Bruno Levy

Loïc Dury

Spanish Apartment Trilogy

Comedy

Drama

Romance

Casse-Tête Chinois

Ce qui me meut

Opposite Field Pictures

Belgacom

StudioCanal

Panache Productions

La Compagnie Cinématographique

Belgium

France

Français

English

Español

广州话 / 廣州話

Chinese Puzzle

friendship

chinatown

immigration

family

usa politics

sham marriage

frenchman abroad

Andres Gomez

This third part of the series started with "The Spanish Apartment" and "Russian Dolls" continues following the life of Xavier and his complications. The cast is the well known and very good from previous parts with the good additions of the children, which perform really well.

This part, although shows again the chaotic life of Xavier, feels, somehow more coherent and luminous, as if the pieces would be finally fitting. Maybe the best way of summarizing the series and the conclusion is with the conversation that Xavier and Martine have by the end of the film in which Martine tell Xavier how she cannot get how Xavier feels his life to be that complicated. For her, it is just life as it is.

Anyway, a movie to pass a good time, with the spicy addition of the mixed languages and (western) cultures which have always made this series something special, although it is clearly addressed to the 70's - early 80's born western generation with a comfortable economic position.

CinemaSerf

"Xavier" (Roman Duris) is maybe not the most reliable of husbands, but I did feel a little sorry for him when wife "Wendy" (Kelly Reilly) decides that she wishes to relocate to the United States, and to take their two children with her. Bluntly, she doesn't really care whether he likes it or not. She's met a new man "John" (Peter Hermann) and is going regardless. Surprisingly for him, this really focusses his priories as he realises that he doesn't want to live without them, so he follows suit. He ends up living in New York's Chinatown where he has to try and sort out a job, accommodation and a lawyer for his impending divorce. What now ensues sees this well meaning but hapless fellow leap from the frying pan to the fire on countless occasions. He even manages to get himself embroiled in a marriage of convenience for a couple of lesbians, is on the wrong visa and a reuniting with "Martine" (Audrey Tautou) is only going to further complicate this already messy scenario. Duris is good with these sorts of roles. The lightly comedic, slightly daft character who is usually always reacting to a shambles of his own making, lurching from one mistake to another whilst genuinely trying to be decent and helpful. There's a fun scene in the sperm donating room - you can just use your imagination for that! Tautou always reminds me of Audrey Helpburn - and here, though she doesn't feature so prominently, she owns her scenes - especially those she delivers in Mandarin. There's also an enjoyable dynamic coming from Sandrine Holt ("Ju") and "Isabelle" (Cécile de France) as they all try to stay one step ahead of the savvy immigration inspector (Peter McRobbie) and the thing builds to a denouement that might also have worked well for Peter Sellers. We could possibly condense the first fifteen minutes a little, but otherwise this is an entertaining middle-age crisis romp that I quite enjoyed.

Chinese Puzzle Official International Teaser Trailer (2013) - Audrey Tautou HD

Chinese Puzzle( 2013)

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A review by Andres Gomez

Written by Andres Gomez on Fri Jan 22 2016

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