That's pretty much what I gathered from your comments, Trevor; I didn't think that you liked it a lot (though a tad more than Orchestra Seats, I presume).

If the likes of Mlo, Smoking/No Smoking, Not on the Lips, etc, were available in your neck of the woods and/or you had seen them, then you probably wouldn't have been as surprised with Private Fears as you appear to be (though I must say that I've yet to see the film, but from what I've read it follows in a similar vein). When compared to, say, a Rivette or a Chabrol, Resnais' career has been slightly more varied. Coeurs was a critical and box office success. And, as I briefly mentioned earlier in the U.S. DVD thread, Muriel is now available.