L’Année prochaine... si tout va bien (1981)

L’Année prochaine... si tout va bien is a French film comedy-drama first released in 1981, directed by Jean-Loup Hubert.  The film stars Isabelle Adjani, Thierry Lhermitte, Bernard Crombey, Antoinette Moya and Fred Personne.  It has also been released under the title: Next Year If All Goes Well.  Our overall rating for this film is: good.


Maxime, a comic book artist, lives with his girlfriend, Isabelle, a level-headed professional.  Although she is happy with the arrangement, Isabelle makes every effort to keep from her parents the fact that she is living with a self-centred, somewhat immature young man who has no income and no desire to lead a conventional life.  All is well until the head-strong Isabelle decides to have a baby.  Maxime is horrified at the prospect but agrees when his girlfriend threatens to find another man to oblige her.  With Isabelle pregnant, the couple have no other choice but to confront Isabelle’s parents...

Although it lacks sparkle and originality, this down-to-earth comedy drama offers an amusing and fairly convincing portrait of two young people coming to terms with their adult responsibilities.  The film’s charm stems mainly from the sympathetic performances from Isabelle Adjani and Thierry Lhermitte, both actors showing themselves at their best when they are most restrained and playing realistic flesh-and-blood human beings.

Lhermitte’s character is easy to identify with – a child who has failed to grow up and seeks only to extend his infancy as far as he can (by refusing to own a car, making a career as a comic book artist and having absolutely no intention of starting a family).  Adjani’s character is more subtle — on the surface she may appear more mature and generous, but beneath her veneer of sophistication she is every bit as self-centred and childish as her boyfriend.  The way that the two characters are gradually compelled to give up their childish lifestyle in order to start a family is both touching and entertaining, even if the film occasionally resorts to some rather tired stereotypes along the way.  Arguably the film’s best point is the song which accompanies its closing credits.   Cult actor-director Mathieu Kassovitz makes a fleeting appearance (as a teenage boy) in one of his earliest film roles.

© James Travers 2003

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