Un balcon sur la mer (2010)
Directed by Nicole Garcia

Film Review

There's a distinctly Hitchcockian feel to Nicole Garcia's latest directorial offering, not least because the plot borrows freely from Hitchcock's chef d'oeuvre Vertigo (1958).  In common with much of Garcia's previous work, Un balcon sur la mer revolves around a quest for identity by a male protagonist who is far more fragile and unsure of himself that he first appears.  Garcia's best film since Place Vendôme (1998), it is an elegantly crafted piece which makes effective use of flashbacks to give an unsettling edge to its narrative (reminding us how flawed a witness our memory can be) but it is weakened by a script that lacks depth and prevents us from getting under the skin of the central protagonist, despite a masterful performance from Jean Dujardin.

When he made this film, Dujardin was better known as comedic actor, having established himself in a series of popular French comedies that include Brice de Nice (2005), OSS 117: Le Caire nid d'espions (2006) and 99 francs (2007).  In Un balcon sur la mer, he takes on a demanding dramatic role, and acquits himself admirably with a performance that is as nuanced as it is poignant.   Here he is partnered by a comparable talent, the versatile Marie-Josée Croze, who is well-suited to play the femme fatale dual role who remains throughout the film an unresolved enigma, reminiscent of Kim Novak's portrayal in Vertigo.  Alas, Sandrine Kiberlain and Michel Aumont are completely wasted in their supporting roles, both doing their best with hopelessly underwritten stereotypical characters.  Claudia Cardinale is better served (who better to play Dujardin's mother?) and shows that she has lost none of her capacity to steal a scene with her lethal charm.

Un balcon sur la mer is a compelling and stylish example of the French sentimental thriller, a film that allows its director to reconnect with her own associations with Algeria, specifically Oran, the town where she spent her childhood and for which she undoubtedly has fond memories.  If it fails to be entirely convincing, that is more down to Garcia's tendency to distance herself from her characters rather than fully engaging with them and expose the depth of pain beneath the surface.  Jean Dujardin's presence gives the film the dramatic intensity and coherence that Garcia's last few films have lacked, and also reveals an actor who has a far greater range and potential than we might have supposed.  You might even think he would one day win an Oscar...

Film Synopsis

Marc Palestro leads an idyllic life in Aix-en-Provence in the sunny south of France.  A 40-something estate agent, he has a beautiful house and an even more beautiful family.  Things have turned out well for him.  One day, he gets a shock when he meets a woman, Marie-Jeanne, who is worryingly familiar.  The stranger appears not to recognise him, and yet Marc is convinced that she is Cathy, the girl he was once passionately in love with when he was living un Algeria just before that country gained its independence.  He was just twelve at the time, but ever since Cathy's face has haunted him.

And now here she is, a fully grown woman - surely this is Cathy?  Marie-Jeanne is not immune to Marc's seductive charms and the two spend a night together.  The next morning, the estate agent wakes up to find that his dream woman has gone away without leaving so much as a farewell note.  Anxious to discover what has become of her, he hastily sets about trying to find her.  As he does so, Marc becomes increasingly uncertain over the woman's identity.  If she isn't Cathy, then who could she be...?