"From 5 to 7 p.m. is the traditional time that French people consecrate to having an extramarital affair. Un cinq a sept is where a man or woman slips out of work or home and squeezes in a sexual escapade. This can be one-time sex or a long-term relationship."

— Marilyn Yolom in How the French Invented Love

Brian Bloom (Anton Yelchin) is a 24-year-old novelist who lives alone in Manhattan and has not had much luck selling his writings; he has plastered his apartment walls with rejection slips from publishers. His parents (Frank Langella and Glenn Close) want him to give up his dreams of becoming a famous writer and go to law school instead. But he persists in his creative pursuits. In a voiceover, he admits: "Some of the best writing in New York won't be found in books or plays . . . but on the benches of Central Park." Brian is in need of inspiration and one day, by chance, he finds just what he needs.

Walking past the St. Regis Hotel, this dreamy young man is taken aback by the stunning beauty of Arielle (Berenice Marlohe). They strike up a conversation and he musters enough courage to ask her out on date even though she is nine years older than he is. They begin an intimate relationship and soon are spending two hours a day — from 5 to 7 — at the St. Regis Hotel having sex. Brian cannot believe his good fortune.

Everything proceeds along quite smoothly until with genuine feeling Arielle introduces her lover to her diplomat husband Valery (Lambert Wilson) and their two young children. He attends a party at their place and even spends some time with their children, who accept him as their mother's lover. It is not too surprising to discover that Arielle's husband is in the midst of an affair with Jane (Olivia Thirlby).

Writer and director Victor Levin has created a May-December relationship that comes across on the screen with warmth and authenticity. It is a pleasure to watch Arielle take the lead in their relationship and to introduce Brian to feelings and emotions he had not known or explored before. The only person aware of this affair who does not appreciate its allure and enchantments is Brian's father who is a believer in the old-fashioned ideal of fidelity.

In this age of skyrocketing divorce, some people argue it is time to redraw the rules of marriage. 5 to 7 compels us to take a global look at this question.