Film Review
Following on from
Conte de printemps (1990),
the second of four films in Rohmer's Four Seasons cycle,
Conte d'hiver is a fine example
of post-New Wave French romantic cinema. It illustrates perfectly Rohmer's gift
for telling a simple story in an effective and moving way, with believable characters
in everyday situations.
As in many of Rohmer's films, there is a much greater emphasis on dialogue than on action.
However, the dialogue is so natural, intelligent and insightful that the film maintains
a balanced momentum throughout and never appears slow or stilted. Rohmer manages
to achieve this because his characters - particularly Félicie - are so naturally
articulate and expressive, offering a clear insight into their mood and innermost thoughts.
We quickly get to know the characters, to the extent that we can almost predict their
behaviour and responses - not because the film is necessarily predictable, but because
we understand the characters so well. This is a reflection of Rohmer's excellent
writing as well as some fine acting performances.
The only thing that mars the film - or, at least, appears grossly unsubtle - is the lengthy
scene where the characters Félicie and Loïc watch a theatre performance of
Shakespeare's play
A Winter's Tale. In an earlier scene, Loïc already
explained the plot in sufficient detail to allow us to make the connection between Félicie's
love story and Shakespeare's play. Having then to sit through this protracted piece
of Shakespearean theatre feels at best unnecessary, at worst indulgent on the part of
Rohmer. Far from reinforcing the parallels it unnecessarily stalls the plot and
creates a false expectation that the film is going to have a fairy tale ending.
However, that is a very minor fault in an otherwise near-perfect piece of French cinema
from a popular and unceasingly perceptive film maker. After this film you feel
duty-bound to watch the other next two instalments in the Four Seasons cycle,
Conte d'été (1996) and
Conte d'automne (1998).
© James Travers 2001
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Next Eric Rohmer film:
L'Arbre, le maire et la médiathèque (1993)
Film Synopsis
During a summer holiday, Félicie and Charles meet and have a whirlwind romance.
Due to a mix-up with their addresses, they lose track of one another, even though Félicie
is carrying Charles' child. Five years later, Félicie is working in Paris
as a hairdresser for Maxence, who is in love with her and who wants her to move with him
to open a new salon in Nevers. She is also loved by a young librarian Loïc,
but Félicie still clings to her first love, Charles, even though the chance of
her meeting him again is remote...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.