In Waves

[Author’s note: two versions of this film screened at Cannes – the original French audio track, and the English-language dub. This writer saw the latter.]

For the first time in 65 editions, the Critics’ Week in Cannes chose an animated film to serve as its opening event. And a very solid choice it was, as Phuong Mai Nguyen’s In Waves, a French production based on AJ Dungo’s graphic novel of the same name, has all the right ingredients to make a splash (pun very much intended) on the international festival circuit (Annecy is already around the corner) and in regular theaters: captivating visuals, clever and emotional writing, and engaging performances from the voice actors.

Dungo (voiced by Rio Vega in French and Will Sharpe in English) conceived of In Waves as a history of surfing, rooted in the activity’s Hawaiian origin, while also integrating his personal experience: his late partner Kristen (Lyna Khoudri/Stephanie Hsu), to whom the film adaptation is dedicated, made him promise that he would keep her alive through his drawings, as she always supported his artistic aspirations, and he in turn made certain sacrifices to be by her side as illness began plaguing her everyday routine (she’s the one who introduced him, previously a skater, to the surfing world).

The film chronicles their romance from start to finish, sweetly capturing the innocence of the early realization that the two are in love and the decision to initially keep it hidden from their parents; then it transitions to the progressive maturation of their connection, as life prospects and Kristen’s health issues need to be taken into account. In keeping with how their feelings evolved, they decide to treat the daily grind as though it were the ocean, and ride the wave until the metaphorical board allows for it.

Life can be a very fluid thing, and Phuong Mai Nguyen (who, like AJ back in the day, came to the project from the perspective of someone who hasn’t quite mastered any surfing techniques) brings that notion to life in breathtakingly spectacular fashion, aided by her crew of 300 people in delivering a story where the watery imagery dictates not just the visual flow of the movie, clearly shaped by the director’s experience at the prestigious Gobelins animation school in Paris, but also the pacing of a narrative that moves along quite efficiently (an hour and a half, including the credits), and yet always finds the time to let scenes and characters breathe. Sometimes literally, as a big chunk of the emotional power of the voice acting is tied to deceptively simple breathing sounds, paired with the sound team’s efforts to make us feel like we’re with them on the beach or in a hospital room.

And while a conventional happy ending is off the table, In Waves is still very much a celebration of the more joyful windows of opportunity provided during one’s existence, as well as a powerful examination of how art – be it the original graphic novel or this film version – can keep our loved ones alive and grant them a form of immortality. AJ and Kristen may not have been destined to grow old together, but thanks to his skills with a pencil and the filmmaker’s vision behind the camera, the experience the two youngsters shared is, in its own way, a love story for the ages.

Director: Phuong Mai Nguyen
Screenwriters: Fanny Burdino, Samuel Doux
Cast: Rio Vega, Lyna Khoudri, Paul Kircher, Birane Ba de la Comédie Française (French), Will Sharpe, Stephanie Hsu (English)
Producers: Priscilla Bertin, Judith Nora
Music: Oklou & Rob
Sound: Franco Piscopo, Emmanuel De Boissieu, Frederic Demolder
Production company: Silex Films
World sales: Charades
Venue: Cannes Film Festival (Critics’ Week)
In French
89 minutes