Summer Hours: New French film about family

Written by Mark Schumann, Father of Three
Thursday, 21 May 2009 10:34

Each week, the Reel Dad checks the nutritional value of a movie — new or classic — to help parents choose what to watch with their children. This week’s pick is the new French film, Summer Hours.

Any family who experiences the loss of an elderly parent or grandparent suffers many types of sadness. Certainly there is a reality, for all generations, of times never to be shared again. And, for siblings, the death of a second parent can bring the need to break up a household, divide treasured items and, perhaps most significant, say goodbye to the one person who held together the tentative relationships between brothers and sister.

Summer Hours, a lovely new French film, reveals with tender simplicity the varying ways that middle-aged children react to a parent’s death. At times, they revert to what must have been the teenaged tension that once filled the family house, as they compete in the intensity of their grief. At other moments, they are ruthlessly practical, as each realizes the turns their lives have taken, and the separate paths they pursue. And, ultimately, they share a sad realization that, with the matriarch’s death, they will never fully share again as siblings. The tie that bound them together has finally passed.

An American movie on this emotional topic would likely cast a big star as one of the siblings — as well as a former personality in search of a comeback as the matriarch — and toss the whole thing out of balance with a series of Oscar-worthy sequences of great dramatic confrontation. Thankfully, the French are too subtle in their moviemaking to fall for such tricks. There are no great battles in Summer Hours, no revelations of deep secrets, no confessions of hidden bitterness. There is, simply, a story of three siblings who, while they share a love for their common history, see no need to preserve its meaning. Ultimately, the coldness they share defines how they relate to each other.

As the film opens, the matriarch celebrates her 75th birthday with her two sons and one daughter and grandchildren. While she claims to cherish time with her family, it’s clear the matriarch dwells on a past relationship with a favorite uncle and a current reliance on a steady housekeeper. As she discusses her impending death with her son, she talks less of the times they spent together than the items they acquired, and appears most focused on how her treasures will be appropriately displayed for the public. After she dies, the surviving siblings share little interest in how to preserve the connections they once experienced. Death, to them, simply means dividing the antique assets.

Director and writer Olivier Assayas brings this story to life through a series of quiet moments, striking visuals and lovely performances. Juliette Binoche, best known to American audiences from The English Patient and Chocolat, is breathtaking as a driven, selfish woman, who simply won’t be inconvenienced by her mother’s passing. French actors Charles Berling and Jeremie Renier strike just the right tones as the competitive brothers and the lovely Edith Scob is moving as the matriarch.

As parents, we hope what we treasure will be appreciated by our children. Realistically, many of the stories we tell about the relatives they never knew may be quickly forgotten. A tale as lovely as Summer Hours can remind us to savor what we consider special in a family and make certain we share the values behind the memories with our children.

Film Nutritional Value:

Summer Hours

* Content: High. Any parent will see themselves in the relationships between the siblings. This a film to share with older children.

* Entertainment: High. As with many French films, the pace is leisurely, the dialogue is simple, and the action is authentic.

* Message: High. What makes a family is not what it acquires over the years but the memories it shares and protects.

* Relevance: High. So many distractions prevent family time together. This lovely film reminds us to invest in each other every day.

* Opportunity for Dialogue: High. We can all be reminded how quickly time passes and how relationships must be nurtured to sustain.

Rating: 4 Popcorn Buckets