Summer of 85

This endearing love-story is pictured from the point of view of 16 year old naive and impressionable Alex, who head over heals falls in love with the more streetwise and impetuous David. Ozon very convincingly shows the kind of summer-love that many of us are all too familiar with: at the start looking like it will last forever, until somewhere along the line one of the two backs out, leaving the other broken-hearted. Ozon creates a wonderful atmosphere, with a sun-drenched seaside village as decor, beautiful cinematography, and a meticulously rendered retro-setting to revive the eighties. All actors are excellent, even the smaller parts of both mothers, but Felix Lefebvre (Alex) and Benjamin Voisin (David) really steal the show with the natural and easy way in which they play their demanding parts, especially Lefebvre who has to go through a rollercoaster of emotions, he at several times moved me to tears. It surprised me a bit that Ozon, the director of so many complex and at times controversial movies, chose this "little" story as a subject. In spite of the tragedy at the centre of the movie, it's rather one-dimensional (I recently saw "Jonas" by Christophe Charrier, with a more or less comparable story, but much more multilayered). And since Ozon is also renowned for some rather explicit movies, this one is remarkably restrained, especially in view of the premise being the sexual awakening of a young teen. It would be interesting to know his considerations on this. But all in all: an excellent, sensitive and endearing movie.

Toward the end of the movie, Alexis asks the teacher a question about David, which is subtitled: "Did he seduce you, too?" The teacher replies something like: "Yes, but he was my student, and I was his teacher." This is confusing to an English speaker, because the teacher seems at once to be admitting to and denying a physical relationship with David. The confusion is owing to the subtitles. In French the verb Alexis uses is séduire, which can mean seduce. But it can also mean.attract, charm, allure, beguile, etc. From the teacher's answer, it's clear that the subtitle should use one of these words, and not seduce, because the point is that while David charmed the teacher, and perhaps tried actively to seduce him, he did not succeed.

Summer of 85 is a fantastic film no matter how you look at it. It's shot on film that displays the grain reminiscent of a film that came right out of the summer of 1985; the cinematography is absolutely beautiful; the story is paced perfectly; the acting is absolutely stellar (having had little exposure to French-language films over the years, none of the actors were recognizable, which helped to sell the story that much more, and every single one of them was incredible); the romantic chemistry between the characters was beautifully effective and it conveyed every bit of sexual tension without actually showing anything particularly graphic. Even through reading subtitles, the film stirred strong emotion and showcased the beauty and tragedy of young love and the fragility and unpredictability of our own lives. The soundtrack is also phenomenal, but the biggest emotional impact revolves around the Rod Stewart song "Sailing," which I will never again be able to listen to without crying. The only singular downside to the film is the creepy mother character, which is something you'll notice in the first 15 minutes of the film. I don't particularly understand the significance of having the character be the way she is as it's quite off-putting, but it's easily overshadowed by a beautiful on-screen romance and tragedy. Definitely headed to my Top 10 list.

As "Summer of 85" opens, the Cure's "In Between Days" plays over the opening credits, and we then get to know Alex, 16. He lives is a small seaside town in Normandy. Wnen he goes out sailing, he capsizes and almost drowns, but is rescued by David, 18. They strike up an immediate friendship and start hanging out together. Then Alex encounters Kate, an English girl who is an au-pair girl for the summer while trying to improve her French. At this point we are 10 min. Into the movie... Couple of comments: this is the latest from writer-director Francois Ozon, whose previous work includes, among many others, the excellent ""Frantz", "In the House" and "Swimming Pool", just to name those. Hence my expectations were quite high for this. Alas, it was not to be. For that the movie is just too average. The two acting leads (Félix Lefebvre as Alexis, Benjamin Voisin as David) are tentative at best, and awkward at times. And the story has run its course, literally, after 70 min., and we must endure another 20 min. That are entirely superfluous. One of the most fun things about the movie, set in the mid-80s, is to watch all of the cars from that era (Citroen, Renault, etc.). Other funny side note: the film was originally titled "Summer of 84", but in order to secure the rights to the Cure's "In Between Days" (which was released in 1985), Robert Smith insisted that the film be set in 1985, and hence the movie's title was changed to "Summer of 85". This movie was set to premiere at last year's Cannes film festival. Of course COVID-19 had other plans... The movie opened out of the blue at my local art-house theater this weekend. The Saturday early evening screening where I saw this at was not attended well: 3 people, including myself. I can't see this playing in US theaters much longer. For that the movie simply is too average. But of course you don't have to take my word for it, so I'd suggest you check this out, be it in the theater (while you still can), on VOD< or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

In the title summer, on a beach town, two teenage boys meet while sailing and fall in love. The story is told mostly by way of an essay that recounts the events of the summer, which allows for selective disclosures (or not). Right at the start of the film, we know something bad has happened, but it takes most of the movie to find out what and why. The young actors are natural, and the cinematography is gorgeous. Being set in 1985, I suppose it can't end in "getting married and living happily ever after", but there is maturity and hope.