One of the most prolific European directors (since his feature debut with Sitcom in 1998, he has released 23 films), François Ozon is also a very uneven one, in no small part due to his willingness to go from heavier subject matters to more frivolous fare. When Fall Is Coming, which marks his return in the main competition at San Sebastián four years after Summer of 85, veers towards the more disposable end of the spectrum, but has enough quirky charm to avoid leaving any major holes in the Ozon layer.
After a brief introductory scene in a church (perhaps an intentional throwback to 2019’s By the Grace of God, which featured three of this film’s four adult leads), we’re treated to the everyday life of Michelle, an elderly woman enjoying retirement in a countryside village in Burgundy, where she lives quite close to her best friend Marie-Claude.
They spend their days walking in the woods and picking mushrooms, while also discussing their complicated family lives: Michelle is partially estranged from her Paris-based daughter Valérie, who somewhat reluctantly pops by from time to time with her son Lucas, while Marie-Claude eagerly awaits the day her son Vincent will be released from jail. All these paths will eventually converge, with equal amounts of tension and humor.
The two main roles are entertaining showcases for Hélène Vincent and Josiane Balasko, who thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to sink their teeth into leading part material that is seldom offered to them nowadays, while Pierre Lottin, best known in France for being part of the main ensemble in the trashy comedy film series Les Tuche, gets to flex his dramatic muscles with a character whose arc is primarily built on subtext (the exact reason he was behind bars is never revealed, although murder is categorically ruled out).
And then there’s Ludivine Sagnier, who returns to the Ozon world after two decades, having last worked with him on 2003’s Swimming Pool. Then, aged 24, she was an agent of chaos, dragging Charlotte Rampling into a game of psychosexual mystery. Now, as Valérie, she’s worn down by an ongoing divorce and yearns for stability, which she doesn’t think is achievable while her mother is around, for reasons not immediately clear (important chunks of backstory are established through dialogue relatively late in the game). It’s a deliberate counterpoint to the cheeky persona she exhibited in films past, and an unusually subtle metatextual touch by the director.
The performances are the main driving force of the movie’s scattershot first half, where it’s unclear what the key dramatic thrust is supposed to: a meditation on old age and loneliness (the title is both literal and symbolic in that regard)? A tale of generational conflict? A cheeky murder mystery with a touch of dementia (yes, that is an angle suggested at one point)? Much like Michelle’s cooking, the servings are varied, though not necessarily rich in this case.
Then, around the halfway mark, akin to a seasonal shift, it all comes somewhat abruptly into focus, and the seeds planted previously do bear fruit in a way that is at once bizarre and endearing, with Ozon fully embracing the value of things left unsaid to pepper proceedings with tiny grace notes, including a peculiarly moving finale that improbably, yet efficiently ties everything together. At that point, fall has indeed arrived, with a hefty mix of melancholy to go with the quirky humor.
Director: François Ozon
Screenwriters: François Ozon, Philippe Piazzo
Cast: Hélène Vincent, Josiane Balasko, Ludivine Sagnier, Pierre Lottin
Producer: François Ozon
Cinematography: Jérôme Alméras
Production design: Christelle Maisonneuve
Music: Evgueni Galperine, Sacha Galperine
Sound: Brigitte Taillandier
Production companies: FOZ
World sales: Playtime
Venue: San Sebastián International Film Festival (Official Selection – Competition)
In French
102 minutes
