An alcoholic writer, misanthropic and divorced, Martin returns from rehab in a terrible state. Visiting his father, a lonely, romantic gardener, he again meets up with his younger brother Gabriel, 16. Energetic and idealistic, Gabriel asks Martin to lend him 1500 euros, which he wants to give to Mathilde, 35, whom he fell hard for in a bar. Martin grudgingly agrees to tag along on an adventure with this mysterious woman.

Picture gallery

There are many reasons not to like Un début prometteur, the debut by Emma Luchini, who uses her famous father Fabrice for this adaptation of a novel by her partner Nicolas Rey - the most important being that this more or less romantic comedy is neither funny nor cute, just embarrassingly useless. The story revolves around the stereotype of the drunken writer, played against type with some conviction by Manu Payet, who goes on an adventure with his little brother as they both discover a love for an extraordinary woman. She is played by the talented Veerle Baetens, who came to fame in The Broken Circle Breakdown. But after one and a half hours of boredom, there remains only one question: how did a movie so simplistic and lacking in new ideas ever get made? The answer is probably: Luchini.