A Summer's Tale

I am generally inclined to give French cinema more chances than it occasionally deserves. But this one, for me at least, failed miserably at every step. Ponderous acting, a clunky and fumbling performance from the male lead, and a pretentious dialogue. Perhaps this was the intention, in which case I clearly missed the point? No charm, no humour, no wit, nothing that redeemed the tedious sequence of pretty unbelievable exchanges between apparently (?) young people with a huge need to analyse, question and debate their every utterance. I persevered to the end, which for me was the only highlight of the film, and took far too long arriving!

Here is a perfect miniature of social comedy at the expense of youth from Eric Rohmer!

A handsome but indecisive young songwriter goes on holiday alone to St Malo in Britanny with his guitar where he meets a charming waitress, Margot, who clearly fancies him but he thinks she isn't good enough for him. He avoids her advances by telling her he is waiting for his girlfriend, Lena, to join him in the next few days. But he quickly forgets Lena when he meets Margot's pretty, sexy friend, willingly embarking on a romance and, to her delight, dedicates a song to her. Margot takes it like a trouper.

Lena turns up casually by chance. Lena is richer and better educated than the new girl, who he dumps quickly because she, like Margot, isn't good enough for him. Then Lena dumps him because her male cousins insist he isn't good enough for her...! He turns to the faithful Margot, who turns out to be an ethnology student, and tries to go from friendship to romance but then hope of a job in music arises and he has to leave Britanny promptly. Which should he chose - Margot or music? Which do you think he chooses? You get the picture?!

So where's the comedy? It's not 'funny ha!ha!'. It's the wry observation of a weak young man, selfishly trying to get the best offer for himself. We are quickly made aware that his music is truly awful. He has absolutely no talent but the girls who fancy him blind themselves utterly! The production is so realistic that one hardly notices what a hopeless case he is ... just as in real life, appearances deceive.

The lovely beaches and villages of Britanny are the silent, unsung heroes of true romance in all this, which are blithely taken for granted by the distracted characters. It is masterly in its delivery. A typical piece of Eric Rohmer. If you have enjoyed his other works, this won't disappoint!

The Tales of the Four Seasons are a delight, each different and capturing through rich cinematography and deep characterisation the essence of the season it portrays. Summer is joyous, carefree and whimsical. A boy, dithers and strums between three lovely girls who each adore him; his only decisive act in the entire movie to run away from all of them. It captures the heartfelt irrelevance of youth and all its playful, timeless excesses. Amanda Langlet as the serious, elusive one is the real joy of the film, she portrays self containment and loss with ardent beauty. An exquisite film of subtle, moving poetry.

A fine portrayal of the insecurities and self-doubts that we feel when we are adolescents, no matter how intelligent and educated we are ( the main character has a Maths. Degree. ) With the 'choices' offered by three girlfriends ( one is platonic for now ), he is unable to make up his mind and the debates and discussions ebb and flow well. As to any final choice being made, you'll have to watch the film ....

K.

This film contains some great Rohmer touches and one stunning sequence where a boy and girl walk the beach talking for what seems like miles and miles.

There are lots of talking sequences - and they seem to go on for hours and hours. It's a feature of Eric Rohmer that the protagonists can talk for ever, seemingly and this is no exception.

However, we were left with the feeling - what is all the fuss about?