Se souvenir des belles choses (2001)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Zabou Breitman

Writers:

Zabou Breitman (scenario, adaptation and dialogue) &
Jean-Claude Deret (scenario, adaptation and dialogue)

Release Date:

9 January 2002 (France)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot Keywords:

Amnesia | Memory | Alzheimer's Disease | Mental Institution | Wine

Awards:

7 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Isabelle Carré	...	Claire Poussin
Bernard Campan	...	Philippe
Bernard Le Coq	...	Prof. Christian Licht
Zabou Breitman	...	Marie Bjorg
Anne Le Ny	...	Nathalie Poussin
Dominique Pinon	...	Robert
Aude Briant	...	Corinne
Denys Granier-Deferre	...	Toto
François Levantal	...	Daniel
Jean-Claude Deret	...	Léo Finkel
Céline Léger	...	Sarah
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bruno Abraham-Kremer	...	Bruno
Nadia Barentin	...	Bernadette
Emmanuel Bréon	...	Guide du musée
Anna Chalon	...	Petite fille Cécile
Antonin Chalon	...	Petit garçon Finkel
Bernard Choquet	...	Négociant Bordeaux
Julien Courbey	...	Stéphane
Laure Courbey	...	Jeune femme hôpital
Edéa Darcque	...	Delphine
Jean-Claude Frissung	...	Grosse Pomme
Léopold Gertner	...	Paul
Paul Gertner
Stella Gertner	...	Stella
Cyliane Guy	...	Isabelle
Marion Held	...	Michèle
Maher Kamoun	...	Zizou
Alain Khong Chhan	...	Nguyen
Michel Laliberté	...	Bastien
Guilaine Londez	...	Isabelle 2
Fabienne Mai	...	Cécile
Luc Palun	...	Guilloux
Françoise Sage	...	Mère enfant supermarché
Delphine Salska	...	Réceptionniste
Thang-Long	...	Papa Bong
Jacqueline Vicaire	...	Belle mère de Philippe
Jacques Zajdermann	...	Malovitch

Also Known As:

Beautiful Memories (International: English title)
Moi, c'est la mémoire (France) (working title)

Runtime:

110 min | Canada:105 min (DVD)

Country:

France

Language:

French | Yiddish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

France:U | Germany:12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud)

Company:

Hugo Films

Soundtrack:

Valse n° 19

Thanks For The Memory

This is, no contest, one of the finest movies to come out of France in the last five years and it would have been a grave miscarriage of justice if Isabelle Carre had not won a Best Actress Cesar for this role. I had seen Carre in several movies and found her competent but nothing special then, all at once the right career-defining role turns up and she shows what she can do. I can pay her no higher compliment than to compare her performance here to that of namesake Isabelle Huppert (the finest French actress bar none) in 'La Dentelliere' (The Lacemaker)with the proviso that Huppert was approximately 10 years younger than Carre when turning in her prize-winning performance. Carre is luminous and for virtually the whole of the running time she gives the impression of a real victim of Alzheimer's so that we feel we are watching a documentary rather than a film that has been scripted, shot and acted. The actors throughout are first rate, not least Bernand Campan as Carre's lover and protector. I saw the movie in an art-house in Balard last year (it's still playing there albeit only one or two screenings per week) and in September of this year I found it on DVD and can play it whenever I like. Out of ten stars it has to rate fifteen. One word description? Can't be done. Lyrical? In spades. Enthralling? And the rest. Magnifique? Doesn't come close. Thank you, Isabelle, Zabou, Campan, thank you for some unforgettable memories.