Jeanne (Virginie Ledoyen), a beautiful young woman with a profusion of boyfriends, always seems to be in a hurry. One day, she meets Olivier (Mathieu Demy), HIV positive, who turns out to be the true love she has been searching for. When Olivier learns he has little time to live, he vanishes, leaving a troubled Jeanne alone, desperately searching for some sign of him. After a while Jeanne learns that Olivier has died. But she resolves that life must go on.

"It wasn't our intention to make light of the seriousness of the ravages of illness by adding a humorous spin to the story. We attempted to show the unfairness of lives cut short and the illness' disastrous effects upon an entire generation." According to the directors Olivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau, "The idea of a musical comedy came to us naturally. The music tunefully illustrates the characters and their transformations without excessive wordy discourse. In showing life's buoyancy and vitality, we could better underline the tragedy of Aids. This energy could only be conveyed through a musical, through its lively song and dance routines which carry movement and life within them."

Olivier Demy, son of French comedy musical director Jacques Demy, said about the film, "I love my father's films and making Jeanne et le Garcon Formidable was reminiscent of the things I love. I feel like I acted in a film that was light and entertaining, yet dealt with a profoundly sad theme. There is a real similarity between my father's films in the way he mingles enchantment and sadness."

Jeanne et le Garcon Formidable  (France - 1997) was shown in the official competition at the Berlin Festival in February. It will come out in France on April 22, 1998.

Director: Olivier Ducastel, Jacques Martineau
Screenplay: Jacques Martineau
Producer: Cyriac Auriol, Pauline Duhault
Music: Philippe Miller
Songwriter: Jacques Martineau
Photo: Mathieu Poirot-Delpech
Editing: Sabine Mamou
Sound: Jean-Jacques Ferran
Costumes: Juliette Chanaud
Decors: Louis Soubrier
Choreography: Sylvie Giron
Cast: Virgine Ledoyen, Mathieu Demy, Jacques Bonnaffe, Valerie Bonneton, Frederic Gorny, Laurent Arcaro, Michel Raskine.
Distribution: Pyramide
Running time: 98 minutes