Qui m’aime me suive (2006) - film review

At 35, Max has everything a man could want to be happy.  Recently appointed head of a private clinic, he can look forward to a successful career as a medical practitioner, the pride of his parents and his devoted wife Anna.  Then, one day, he is struck by a sudden realisation that he is going in totally the wrong direction.  Whilst drowning his sorrows in a bar, he meets Chine, a woman of his own age who is happily persuing an obscure career as a cabaret singer.  In an instant, Max makes up his mind to throw his well-paid job and start over again.  The time has come for him to fulfil his teenage ambition – to form a rock band with his friends.  Changing track at this time in his life proves to be harder than Max had imagined, and the sacrifice is much greater than he bargained for...

Mid-life crisis seems to be a recurring theme in Benoit Cohen’s work.  After Nos enfants chéris (2003), he brings together Romane Bohringer and Mathieu Demy for a similar bitter-sweet portrayal of a middle-aged man who is forced  to review his life and decide on his future direction.   Qui m’aime me suive may not be as convincing or as polished as Cohen’s earlier film, but it is a thoughtful and well-realised piece of comedy-drama, funny in some places, poignant in others, and with a hugely engaging performance from Mathieu Demy.  The film’s brutally pessimistic ending jars somewhat with the generally upbeat tone of the film, although Cohen does succed in making his point with great effect.

© James Travers 2007

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