‘Partir‘ (2009) is my first encounter with a film by the French director Catherine Corsini. The impression is mostly positive. Corsini (who is also the main author of the film’s script) seems to me to be a mature filmmaker, master of her means of cinematic expression and well focused on the feminist thematics. She’s also the type of director who knows how to choose the actors who fit her vision of the roles, letting them chose how they see the characters. In the case of this film, the lead role is played by the excellent Kristin Scott Thomas. The presence of this actress whom I appreciate a lot was the main reason why I chose to see the film. I was not wrong.
Suzanne, the film’s heroine, seems to have everything she could wish in life. She is married to a wealthy doctor, lives in a sumptuous villa in the south of France decorated with modern works of art, has two teenage children who don’t seem to cause any trouble. Looking for more interest in life, she plans to resume her occupation as a physiotherapist interrupted by the time she had to take care of the children. When she meets Ivan, a renovation tradesman, immigrant from Spain, who seems to have had problems with justice, what the French call ‘coup de foudre’ happens between the two. Does Suzanne and Ivan’s relationship have any chance of being more than a simple extramarital affair? Everything seems to be against them – the husband’s refusal to accept that he is losing his wife, economic conditions, social status. The price of fulfilling love seems to be huge.
I liked the directorial approach. Catherine Corsini doesn’t judge her characters or condition her viewers to how they should feel. What happens between Suzanne and Ivan seems neither obvious nor inevitable. Nor is Samuel, the husband, an obnoxious figure, justifying feelings other than, perhaps, boredom. Kristin Scott Thomas has a complex and interesting role. Her Suzanne seems to be overwhelmed by feelings that erupt late in life. Attempts to control them rationally fail repeatedly in the face of emotions, and the woman herself seems bewildered by what is happening to her. Fighting the system and the people around has little chance of success. The two men in Suzanne’s life are played by Sergi López and Yvan Attal. Both are excellent actors, although their roles are not as plentiful. ‘Partir‘ manages to overcome the limits of a routine family drama and gives viewers a taste of true life and genuine feelings.