Un long dimanche de fiançailles (2004)
Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Film Review

The international success of Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain in 2001 came as a substantial career boost for both director Jean-Pierre Jeunet and actress Audrey Tautou, and it was inevitable that the two would work together within a very short time.  Jeunet's trademark cinematic style and Tautou's irresistible charms are put to good in use in their second collaboration, Un long dimanche de fiançailles, an unusual romantic mystery drama, set in the aftermath of the Great War.

The film begins with a spectacular recreation of the First World War battle scenes, which, like that in Lewis Milestone's All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), rapidly conveys the horrific reality that was trench warfare, leaving the spectator chilled and ever so slightly queasy.  However, this impression soon evaporates when Jeunet attempts to re-use the style of his previous film in order to progress the narrative - voiceover, flashbacks, superimposed inserts, etc.  What worked so well in Amélie Poulain just appears inappropriate, if not slightly absurd, within the context of a World War I drama.  Any sense of emotional depth or pathos is pretty much decimated by Jeunet's excessively stylistic, slightly saccharine approach and clumsy attempts to inject humour.

This is not to say that the film is without merit.  On the contrary, the sheer beauty of the sepia-tinted cinematography and the captivating performances from a very talented cast make this an engaging film which, despite its awkward narrative structure and excessively complicated plot, succeeds in holding our interest.  Fans of Audrey Tautou will certainly not be disappointed, since the young actress almost carries the film with her intense portrayal of a vulnerable young woman driven by a near-tragic sense of (seemingly) misguided optimism.  Her presence alone gives the film the poetry and humanity that is so desperately needed and which is so badly lacking elsewhere.

Unfortunately, there is barely enough content to sustain a film of two hours and ten minutes.  The secondary story strand involving a sadistic Corsican woman avenging the death of her lover (in the style of Kill Bill) is obvious “padding” and looks and feels completely out of place.  The ending is also pretty much a foregone conclusion, so the attempt to create any sense of mystery and suspense is largely wasted effort.  Indeed, the film's concluding scene is so entirely predictable that is has virtually no emotional impact at all, and it leaves a very sour after-taste.

Coming in the wake of the enchanting Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain, this follow up Jeunet offering probably appears much less impressive than it should.  However, the mere fact that the two films are so similar in style ensures that comparisons between them are inevitable, and it is obvious which is the weaker film.  Un long dimanche de fiançailles has two main problems - the absence of a convincing storyline and the use of a visual style which is inappropriate for its subject.  It is a credit to Jeunet and his cinematographer that the film holds together as well as it does.  However, for a budget of 45 million euros and all the talent at the director's disposal, the film deserves to be much better than it is.

Film Synopsis

Shortly after the end of World War I, Mathilde learns of the death of her fiancé Manech on the battlefield.  Unable to accept this news, she embarks on her own search to find the man she loves and who, she is certain, is still alive, somewhere.  To that end, she hires a private detective, Germain Pire, to investigate.  Together, Mathilde and Pire start to piece together the mystery of what happened to the lost soldier.  It transpires that Manech was one of a group of five infantry men who were sentenced to death for self-mutilation in the hope of being sent away from the Front.  The five were taken out into No-Man's Land between the French and German trenches and left to die in the crossfire.   Even when Mathilde receives an eyewitness account that her fiancé was gunned down she clings to her belief that he is still alive, waiting for her…