Out of Season
Short Take: The phrase comes from the film industry, originally, and it means a short bit of recording or “something that only takes a short time,” especially if a longer version may be done later.
Short Take review: A short review of a film with potential discussion points
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2 (out of 5 stars)
Summary: Mathieu (Guillaume Canet) is a world famous actor who has recently had a nervous breakdown that caused him to leave his latest stage production abruptly. He retreats to a seaside spa during the winter to try to find himself again. Yet, fans who want to get a selfie with the actor continually interrupt the therapy sessions. Nothing about the getaway serves the purpose of recovering from his fame until he gets a message from his former lover, Alice (Alba Rohrwacher). She lives in the community with her family and thought she would reach out to Mathieu after 15 years since he was alone in this remote village. As they meet and share about how their lives have gone since they parted, they both begin to wonder if this meeting was meant for something for both of their lives.
Review: Writer/director Stéphane Brizé continues to prove how subtlety can lead to profound life experiences. As he pans across the seascape and captures the melancholy of the seaside village, the celebrated actor paints a canvas of grey hues that complement the whole mood of this unlikely romance. Guillaume Canet and Alba Rohrwacher embody their roles with heartbreaking emotional tension bordering on potential hopeful escape. Despite their character’s lives going in very different trajectories, each shows how they are looking for that spark from their past to reignite the passion for their current lives. While the story plays out as extremely conventional, it is broken up by an unconventional wedding scenario that gives this narrative a unique take and helps to support the inevitable conclusion. Out of Season is a story that is sorrowfully beautiful with a European flare that brings a harsh reality to an otherwise standard forbidden romance.
Reel Dialogue: Where do you go for satisfaction when you have everything this life offers?
Mathieu’s character proves that you can have everything the world has to offer but feel empty and alone in the end: money, fame, relationships, and a lifestyle that others envy. Yet, within this world of plenty, he shows how dissatisfied he is with all he has in his current life and looks for satisfaction in his unexpected past. His life seems to be chasing after the wind…
Realistically, times have not changed in this world or even thousands of years prior, when Solomon said, "Meaningless, meaningless, everything is meaningless" in Ecclesiastes.
This book of wisdom addresses the existential angst we all experience. It also gives a surprising answer that is worth considering: God is really the only place where you can find satisfaction in this life.
