Intimate Strangers is a charming French romance that unravels with mounting intrigue. The story about what happens when two strangers are thrown together and become completely enthralled with each other is enhanced by terrific performances from an outstanding cast.  

Tax accountant William Faber (Fabrice Luchini) keeps his office, which is a room in his Paris apartment, as neat and orderly as his books. When a young woman is ushered into his office by his secretary (Isabelle Petit-Jacques), William believes she’s a new client. However, after hearing Anna’s (Sandrine Bonnaire) first statement -- that she has been married for four years but not had sex for six months -- William becomes instantly spellbound and says nothing, letting Anna continue on and on about her martial problems.

When Anna suddenly stops talking, she announces she’ll be back the next week, then leaves. William is speechless. Realizing Anna believes she was speaking to the psychiatrist down the hall, he’s compelled to get in touch with her to let her know the truth. But the woman left neither her name nor her number. Since William does have a reclining couch in his office for his naps, he figures the mistake was genuine and intends to send Anna properly on her way when she returns.

On her next visit, Anna jumps right in with more revelations, and William looks at Anna with a longing he has not felt in some time. His honor finally compels him to confess, “I am not a doctor,” but Anna goes on, thinking he’s merely confessing a lack of credentials, and soon she is revealing intimate details about herself and her situation.

French director Patrice Leconte sets up his story exquisitely. Although Anna unravels her life story like Niagara Falls, her actions prove she is as cloistered as William. She rarely removes her gloves and remains in her coat during the first few sessions with William. When he finally convinces her he is only a tax man, she tells him that he possesses what many have lost, “the art of listening.” She asks if she can keep seeing him.

William thinks of Anna day and night, tries to learn more about her and ignores the sullen looks from his secretary when Anna comes and disappears behind closed doors. Anna and William are perfect opposites. She adores rambling on and on, and William is so mesmerized by her beauty he barely mumbles a word. His entire world is his apartment, the very place where he was born, and in an odd way, Anna seems his escape into the outside. For Anna, William represents a steadfast and orderly presence that contrasts to her peculiar husband, a man in a wheelchair who wants to satisfy his sexual needs by watching her make love with someone else, a deed she  doesn’t understand and is not willing to do.

Luchini is excellent as William, a shy, isolated and quirky man afraid to step out in the real world but fascinated by it. Likewise Sandrine Bonnaire fulfills the character of Anna, a woman so frustrated she longs for a sympathetic ear, a loving and patient glance. But she’s also exciting, bold and mysterious -- traits that keep the audience constantly questioning about who she really is and what she really wants.

Filmmaker Patrice Leconte may not be a recognizable name to most Americans, but his movies about power, romance and intrigue are making their mark here. Man on the Train received positive comments from U.S. audiences, and Leconte’s Ridicule was nominated for an Oscar. In Intimate Strangers, Leconte’s ability to channel his actors builds a combustible sexual tension between Anna and William.  

An underlying psychological scenario dancing around the probability of any future for Anna and William kept drawing me further into this story, and I wondered how there could ever be a solution to their problem. Not to worry, Intimate Strangers delivers a satisfying journey while entertaining us along the way.

(Released with English subtitles by Paramount Classics; rated “R” for sexual dialogue.)