Review: François Ozon's Tiresome 'The New Girlfriend' Starring Romain Duris

Tone has always been an issue for François Ozon, the hit-or-miss filmmaker behind “Swimming Pool,” “In the House,” “8 Women” and “Young and Beautiful.” His work can be playful and dark, comical and serious, silly and harsh, often at the same time. When it works, as in “Swimming Pool” and the underrated “In the House,” the results can be wonderfully mysterious and wildly seductive. But when it doesn't, the results are awfully messy. “The New Girlfriend” is, without question, an Ozon mess. It is an endearing mess, in a way, thanks to its actors, but make no mistake, “The New Girlfriend” is one of Ozon’s weakest efforts to date.

The film starts promisingly enough, with the bold image of a blonde woman in her wedding dress — in her coffin. This is Laura, the character whose presence, even in death, impacts every person onscreen. As Laura’s best friend Claire (French star Anaïs Demoustier, also appearing at TIFF in the more well-received “Bird People”)...