Film Review
Le Passager de l'été is
one of those frustrating films that promises much but delivers far
less than you expect. The story it tells has immense potential, and with such a
strong cast it is hard to imagine how the film could fail to hit the
mark. But fail it does. It's almost heartbreaking to see
the efforts of such talented performers as Catherine Frot
(
La Dilettante)
and Grégori Derangère (
Les Fragments d'Antonin)
being thwarted by the film's obvious technical
and artistic deficiences. With its languid pace and anaemic
composition,
Le Passager de
l'été feels like a Mills and Boon novel that has
had every last ounce of passion sucked out of it.
Le Passager de l'été was the first film to be directed by Florence
Moncorgé-Gabin, the daughter of the iconic French film actor
Jean Gabin. She had
previously worked as a script supervisor on various films in the 1970s
and 1980s, collaborating with celebrated directors Jean
Pierre-Melville, Claude Pinoteau and Claude Lelouch on such films as
Un flic
(1972),
La Boum 2 (1982) and
Attention
bandits! (1986). She has also made one short film,
Les Pros (1986), featuring the actor Jean-Paul Belmondo.
If there is one reason for watching this film it is to get an insight
into how life was lived on a farm in the early 1950s, to appreciate
just how hard life was for farm workers before the advent of modern
farming methods. (Alternatively, you could watch
Raymond Depardon's
Profils paysans,
which is even more eye-opening.) Even here, however, the film falls somewhat
short of the mark. Instead of a realistic depiction of country
life, with all its sweat and grime and tears, what we are shown is a
romanticised portrayal of Disney-style simplicity, which looks looks suspiciously like an
advertisement for a variety of French cheese. What a let down.
© James Travers 2008
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
Since her husband left her, Monique has put everything
into running the family farm. She works tirelessly, although the
burden is more than she can manage. When a young man named Joseph
turns up on her doorstep looking for work, she readily hires him to
help out on the farm. Despite the difference in their ages,
Monique and Joseph find themselves drawn to one another and it is not
long before Monique finds a place for her handyman in her bed.
Joseph soon grows tired of Monique and transfers his attentions to his
employer's attractive daughter, Jeanne. This betrayal is more
than Monique can bear...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.