| Cast: | Charles Berling, Michel Bouquet, Natacha Regnier, Amira Casar, Stephane Guillon |
| Genre: | Drama |
| Director: | Anne Fontaine |
| Screenplay: | Anne Fontaine & Jacques Fieschi |
| Cinematography: | Jean-Marc Fabre |
| Composer: | Jocelyn Pook |
Jean-Luc (Charles Berling) gets a notice that his father, who he hasn't seen since he abandoned the family before his kids were old enough for Elementary School, is dead. Soon after Maurice (Michel Bouquet) shows up claiming to be said papa. Maurice would be the bad guy in almost any other film because his neglect marked his family forever, the few hours he spent with his younger son Patrick include the day he deserted him at a supermarket. He actually has the guts to tell Jean-Luc, "I am not required to love you." But this is a film that examines the world with a detached eye, challenging even the most accepted notions in an effort to get the audience to reexamine their views. Another reason the film works so well is it doesn't hinge on whether the letter was a mistake, Maurice is an imposter, or Jean-Luc is imagining it at all. The point is Jean-Luc was affected by the absence of his father, and his death or return provides the opportunity for a transformation, a chance to break free.
The film examines the difference in the two generations, showing the negative direction the world has gone in. Though father and son are both ostensibly doctors, Maurice is from the generation that thought their purpose was to save humanity. His character is one of the most eager and self sacrificing in the lot, and thus he tended to wind up where he's needed the most, in Africa trying to help people who won't exactly be subsidizing his mansion and sports cars. Jean-Luc is from the younger generation of certified con men, out to make a buck no matter the toll on humanity. He preys on frailty, vanity, and lack of self confidence with "anti-aging" processes that turn people into inflexible freaks, who wind up needing more and more surgeries to correct the leaks, imbalances, and misalignments the supposed “improvements” create. Unfortunately, director Anne Fontaine’s seeming anti plastic message cannot be seen as anything but hypocritical in light of her subsequent film I have no plans of enduring, Nathalie..., staring Emmanuelle the Duck.
Maurice has lived through a lot of squalor, but his quests make his life unpredictable and adventurous. Meanwhile, Jean-Luc has what's described as an idyllic life with his opulent mansion, pool, expensive car, and trophy wife, but typically it only brings boredom and dissatisfaction. Everything in his life is so calculated, achieved only through his careful construction and enormous willpower that there's no surprise, no spontaneity, no adventure, nothing beyond the predictable, routine, and mundane.
Jean-Luc's dominance leaves him with no peers. His younger brother Patrick (Stephane Guillon) is a failed comedian who now works as his chauffeur. His lovely wife Isa is played by Natacha Regnier, one of the best examples against plastic surgery I can think of, who has graduated from playing lively working class characters such as Marie in Erick Zonca’s wonderful Dreamlife of Angels to a remarkably inanimate wealthy one. Much of Isa’s dullness is due to the pills he pushes on her, which zombify her and give her hot flashes years before her time. Her raison d'ete as far as Jean-Luc is concerned is hosting his fancy parties, otherwise she’s just sort of there. They only have sex once in a while when he decides it's time, which is not nearly as often as he decides it's time with other women, primarily his only coworker we see Myriem (Amira Casar), who apparently strips on command.
Maurice possesses all the characteristics Jean-Luc does not, all that he'd like to have but is to "rational" to risk anything for. He's a playful globetrotter who is willing to go through hard times in order to maintain his freedom. He may not have money or be loved, but he has confidence in himself, knows that somewhere sometime he'll land on his feet. It's no surprise that Jean-Luc’s circle quickly prefers him to Jean-Luc. He spends time with Isa, who puts on the bourgeois façade but is suffering for the obvious reasons and also because she believes she can't have children. Maurice listens to her, tries to help her with her health problems, tells her how impressive she looks unmasked. He’s is by no means heroic; he is simply alive.
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