Another fine effort from Nicole Garcia, reminiscent of another bitter-sweet movie I also enjoyed, Philip Lioret's Mademoiselle. Both films feature a married wife and mother spotting something that instantly transports them back to a time they encountered love. Nicole Garcia, consciously or not, includes a lovely in-joke; Tchaikovsky's June Barcarolle is a key element in the movie, played initially by Gabrielle's lover and again, years later, by her son. Sigmund Romberg composed several operettas in the 1920s and 30s and cheerfully admitted to 'borrowing' from the classics; his song Lover Come Back To Me, utilised thirteen notes of June Barcarolle in the Release, under the words 'I remember ev'ry little thing you used to do' and then, four notes later 'ev'ry road I walked along, I walked along with you', and Gabrielle writes dozens of unanswered letters to her lover begging him to come back to her. Although everyone turns in a fine performance the film is lifted a notch by the exceptional acting of Marion Cotillard and equally outstanding direction of Nicole Garcia. Not to be missed.
Review of From the Land of the Moon
