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(La Femme de l'aviateur). Several films tackle the great French themes-Love, Desire, Paris-but surprisingly few filter them through the eyes of a sleep-deprived paranoid obsessive. For that we turn most thankfully to this "masterpiece of Parisian fatalism" (Village Voice), the first-and funniest-of Rohmer's Comedies and Proverbs. Doe-eyed romantic François studies law, works the nightshift, and adores Marie, a slightly older woman who peppers him with either caresses or critiques, depending on the mood. Spotting an ex-lover leaving Marie's apartment, François abandons study and sleep and instead jealously tails him around Paris, picking up a cheerfully untethered-to-reality teenage girl along the way. Poised (like most college boys) between slumber and desire, François can't tell where fever dreams end and disillusioned reality begins.