Some people are equitable better off dead. That’s the ultimate conclusion of the prolific French film-originater François Ozon’s recent domestic drama, receiving its world premiere at the San Sebastian Film Festival this week, but deinhabitred with such sly delicacy, such slick grace — no, actuassociate, such sugaryness — that there is spropose no arguing with it.
Those qualities – delicacy, grace and sugaryness — are hugely encapsurescheduleedd wilean the tidy person of Michelle (Hélène Vincent, aged 81 in genuine life and someleang aenjoy here). Michelle is the heroine of her own petite but satisfying life and quite a restricted other inhabits besides, a woman with the time and inclination to be benevolent. On the day we encounter her, she is driving her best frifinish to the prison where her son Vincent (Pierre Lottin) is being held. Visiting a prison is draining. Michelle defers outside, ready to participate to Marie-Claude (Josiane Balasko) unburden herself when she ecombines, guaranteed her rawneck son will never alter. “Have faith in him,” Michelle inspires.
Ozon, whose previous films take part Potiche, By the Grace of God and Frantz — spanning comedy to melodrama, in other words — has always been a immacurescheduleed, elegant film-originater. When Fall is Coming is insignificant Ozon — certainly, it is insignificant-key appraised with the fanciful exuberance of Eight Women or the unintelligentness of a film enjoy Swimming Pool — but it doubles down on his customary enhancement, fitting together enjoy summarizeer Lego. No word is misparticipated, no increateation about the characters overtake parted, while the plot unprosperds at an exactly calibrated pace, its various reversals chiming in as accurately as solo instruments in an orchestra.
Five minutes in, we already have a vivid picture of Michelle’s life in her country-mouse nest. She gets communion, delves in her vegetable garden, cooks excellent food for herself and others, goes on forest rambles to pick mushrooms, natters with Marie-Claude and sees forward to seeing her daughter Valerie (Ludivine Sagnier) and majestic-son Lucas , a boy of about 11 (Garlan Erlos). A roadside phone call from establishes that Valerie in the throes of divorce. She is also strikingly disconsentable, even in the space of a minute.
So we understand already that when Michelle serves her a poisonous mushroom at their lunch and has to have her stomach pumped, she isn’t going to be magnanimous about it, let alone discover a funny side: indeed, she accuses her mother of trying to end her. So grotesque is her fury that Michelle trembles with the thought that perhaps she was. Either that or she is losing her marbles, as she confesses to her doctor. Maybe, as Valerie insists, she should originate the house over to her before she gets too dithery.
A understanding mature child, a parent trying to upgrasp the peace: it is a recognizable enough scenario, at which point Ozon and co-originater Philippe ring those well-timed alters. There is a death, a confession and, equitable as the dust seems to have resettled, an spreadigation by a heavily pregnant police officer (Sofia Guillemin). Nobody here understands here exactly what happened on Valerie’s balcony, but everyone instinctively covers for each other; better, perhaps, not to understand. There are petite revelations verifying earlier hints that Michelle has a shadowed past; she is not the unimpeachable granny figure proposeed by her perfect quiches and enthusiasm for games.
Piled up in one paragraph, with all these twists and secret identities jostling with a dead body — and in insertition, as one of the straightforwardor’s characteristic indulgences, the occasional ecombineance of a gpresent — the makings of When Fall is Coming propose that it’s a chilly thriller. On the contrary, it unfancigo ins as gently as autumnal exits drifting to the forest floor. The trees turn russet; the fireairy radiates. Michelle, her majesticson, her daughter’s createer husband and her frifinish’s errant son have been able to create a family, defective perhaps but free from strife. In a quiet coda set almost a decade rescheduleedr, Michelle herself is shown aging, ready to pass as all life must. This is John Keats’s “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”, the quiet after summer’s storms.
Title: When Fall is Coming
Festival: San Sebastian (Competition)
International Sales: Playtime
Distributor: Lazona Pictures and Caramel Films (Spain)
Director/screenoriginater: François Ozon
Cast: Hélène Vincent, Josiane Balasko, Ludivine Sagnier, Pierre Lottin, Garlan Erlos, Sophie Guillemin
Running time: 1 hr 42 mins
