Film Reviews

Leaving

• Rating:
• Director: Catherine Corsini.
• Starring: Kristin Scott Thomas, Sergei López, Yvan Attal.
• Details: France / 85mins (16).

Kristin Scott Thomas seems to have found her calling - tragic French drama. After Tell No One and I've Loved You So Long, Thomas' series of outstanding performances continues with Leaving and proves yet again that films about women need not be fluffy romantic comedies. Leaving opens with Suzanne (Thomas) lying in bed beside her sleeping husband, Samuel (Attal). She stares at the roof for a moment before rising and disappearing into another room. A moment later a gunshot rings out. Director Corsini then cuts back to six months earlier where Suzanne, a budding physiotherapist, shows the construction worker, Ivan (Lopez), what exactly needs clearing out of the old shed in her backyard. Sparks fly and although Suzanne does what she can do dismiss the flirty nature of their friendship, she can't deny that she's falling for Ivan in a big way. She soon finds herself sucumming to her feelings... This is where most movies climax - the wronged woman riding off into the sunset with her hero - but Corsini uses it to jump off point: She wants to explore the realistic consequences and the devastation an affair can have on a family. Corsini delves into the practicality of an affair: where do you go when you leave? Where do you live? What do you do for money? What do you do when the fiery affair begins to burn out? New friends have to be made. Starting all over again is not always a good thing. Corsini is out to reprimand Suzanne for her, as she sees them, selfish actions in this punitive plot, and the way the writer-director sees it Suzanne deserves everything that's coming to her. The affair is hot, heavy and fast and her only excuse is: "I didn't ask for it. It hit me. I can't help it." It's not meant as an excuse, but as a reason, and in Corsini's eyes it's not good enough. How Suzanne still comes across like a sympathetic character is down in part to Corsini's deft writing (with Gaelle Mace) but also to Thomas' superb performance. Her eyes sparkle with fear and indecision but also determination and Thomas excels in delivering Suzanne's frustration and confusion. She's backed up by Lopez and Attal who are playing with less than Thomas has to work with; Attal's Samuel is a little stern, sure, but he's no one-dimensional bad husband, while Lopez's ex-con struggles with his chequered past and maintaining a relationship with his daughter. All characters ring true in this slow-burning drama. Leaving is a stirring film and shouldn't be missed.

Review by Gavin Burke