A TALE OF WINTER
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1994 James Berardinelli
Rating (Linear 0 to 10): 8.0
Date Released: varies Running Length: 1:53 Rated: NR (Nudity, sexual situations)
Starring: Charlotte Very, Frederic Van Dren Driessche, Michel Voletti,
Herve Furic, Ava Loraschi, Christiane Desbois
Director: Eric Rohmer
Producer: Margaret Menegoz
Screenplay: Eric Rohmer
Cinematography: Luc Pages
Music: Sebastien Erms
Released by MK2 Productions USA
In French with subtitles
A TALE OF WINTER is the second installment in French director Eric Rohmer's TALE OF FOUR SEASONS series. The first, A TALE OF SPRINGTIME, was produced in 1989 and released in the United States approximately two years ago. Rohmer's intention with these films is to "focus on attractive, intelligent, self-absorbed if not entirely self-aware young women who present their dilemmas with clarity and elegance and express their feelings in inspired and witty dialogue."
The first picture, A TALE OF SPRINGTIME, tells of the budding friendship between a young woman and a girl ten years her junior. It has a lot to say about the human condition, and does so through a small group of characters that we grow to know and care about. Occasionally, the film slips off-track with pretentious intellectual spiels on philosophy, but in general A TALE OF SPRINGTIME progresses like real life, with superb characterization and deft acting as its hallmarks.
A TALE OF WINTER, which involves very different situations and characters from those presented in Springtime, is even more engrossing than its predecessor. The theme of this film is love, which is something that just about every human can relate to. Whatever form love might take--friendship, companionship, passion, sex--A TALE OF WINTER examines it.
The movie opens with Felicie (Charlotte Very) engaging in a brief- but-intense "vacation affair" in the south of France with Charles (Frederic Van Dren Driessche), an itinerant chef who is on his way to America. As a result of a mistake in the address she gives him, Felicie loses touch with Charles, and is unable to contact him when she gives birth to Elise (Ava Loraschi), their daughter.
Five years later, it's winter in Paris, and even though Felicie is currently involved with two men--Maxence (Michel Voletti) and Loic (Herve Furic)--both of whom are madly in love with her, Felicie is unable to commit to a relationship with either because of a premonition that someday she will again find Charles, her one true love. Nevertheless, reality is a cruel taskmaster, and Felicie is finding it increasingly difficult to define exactly how she feels about Maxence and Loic.
A TALE OF WINTER is gripping and engaging, not only because of the mystery of whether Felicie will ever again encounter Charles, but in its carefully realistic portrayals of her relationships with Maxence (a beautician whom she finds physically attractive) and Loic (an "egghead" whom she finds intellectually stimulating). Each of these men is a different sort of person, and their interactions with Felicie are fascinating to observe. No matter who you are, you're likely to see some element of yourself in one of the three main characters.
There are no villains in this film. In fact, all of the principles are likeable. Conflict, while not shunned, is kept to a minimum, and issues are resolved in a sound, rational manner with no hint of melodrama. And, for those who have never seen an upbeat French film, or one with a "happy ending," A TALE OF WINTER is likely to surprise.
As seems obligatory in any Rohmer movie, there are a number of highly-philosophical discussions, some of which run on a little long (although the excesses present in A TALE OF SPRINGTIME are avoided here). Topics include the nature of intelligence, the relationship between the supernatural and religion, the meaning of love, and the existence of the soul. Some of these are engrossing; others are worthy of a yawn. For those to whom such intellectual interactions do not appeal, there is always the core story.
Charlotte Very is an appealing young actress whose exposure in this movie led to her being cast for a supporting role in BLUE. The bubbly energy she invests Felicie with keeps A TALE OF WINTER upbeat, even when things aren't going right. Very plays as well off her co-stars as they do off of her, and is plainly the centerpiece of attention.
A TALE OF WINTER gets its name from Shakespeare's THE WINTER'S TALE, a scene from which is performed during the course of the movie. Watch this carefully, since it gives more than a clue as to how Felicie's story will be resolved.
With A TALE OF SPRINGTIME and A TALE OF WINTER, Eric Rohmer has given us a pair of wonderful motion pictures. Each deals with the complexities of apparently-simple themes, and utilizes genuine characters and uncontrived situations to work through them. Friendship with Spring and Love with Winter ... I wonder what Summer and Autumn will bring.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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