Pauline at the Beach (1983) review

No doubt one of Rohmer's most appealing films, this is a free-spirited romp that involves several people at different stages in their sexual lives finding conflict with each other at a beachside resort. Rohmer's usual preference for long-winded philosophical exchanges and an air of intellectual superiority are pushed in the background so that the characters themselves are at the forefront: instead of telling you what to think, he's showing you by using parallel relationships: that of an older man and a firm-bodied blonde and the budding romance between two (virginal?) teenagers, not to mention two extra variables, a jealous young surfer and a peddler girl who does what she wants, when she wants. It's appropriately relaxed but still pointed, and actually warrants the 'moral tale' tag.