An Impossible Love

This movie grabbed me because I love French films, and I'm drawn to watching films with both of the lead actors.

It started off good, if not extremely maddening, due to the storyline of the main female character letting herself being used and walked over. That was hard to watch.

Then, halfway through, as the daughter starts to grow up and different actors are used for the character, it gets messy. The storyline in the second half, which I was not expecting, and made me pretty sick, was weird and could be triggering for some.

I love how films make you really feel something, but if it's a storyline for a movie (such as the one that starts halfway through in this movie), I'll usually give it a miss - but who knew from the outset? You'd never guess, and it's pretty gross. Then comes the hastily put-together ending between mother and daughter. I think the title An Impossible Love / Un amour impossible was inaccurate. Perhaps, Un amour revoltant would have been more apt.

I did not seek out this film.

Watched it one Sunday afternoon on BBC iPlayer.

I was feeling unwell and thought it looked gentle enough. There was no write up, so did not know what to expect.

It was a fine, intelligent film; Rachel was a wonderful character, I liked and understood her. It is this factor that sustains the film throughout. The two hours or so passed quickly; one becomes heavily invested in the central character.

One is left with no doubt about Phillippe from the start, he is not ordinary and totally narcissistic. Therein lies the reason for, what sometimes seems like, his unfathomable hold over Rachel. This is not about class differences or anything as mundane as that keeping lovers apart, this is about a true narcissist's manipulation of a trusting and loving girl / woman.

When adult Chantel, Rachel and Philippe's daughter, confronts Rachel at the end, Rachel's answer is believable; she simply did not conceive that the problems in their mother and daughter relationship, during Chantel's teenage years, was anything other than that she, Rachel, was simply not good enough.

I am trying not to give anything away, just watch the film and see it play out. Just remember that it is Rachel's life you are watching unfolding.

I saw this film in London yesterday and loved it. The story takes place in France in the late 50's. It is about love that is subverted by extreme selfishness and class difference, about shifting attitudes and emotions and about reconciliation. Corsini's direction is understated, and the acting of all the leads is very convincing. The film is over two hours long and I wasn't bored for a second.

I was certainly gripped by the set-up. Fine performances, nicely directed and stylish portrayal of events. My issue was with the sudden and what seemed to me, convenient/unearned simplistic ending. I simply did not 'buy' the ending. I agree with another user review which suggests we are simply presented with a 'one-note villain. Are we really to believe a Mother/woman who never responds vocally to a man such as Phillipe is a reliable narrator ? Is the Mother as innocent and worthy/decent as the character suggests? It has many strengths - but ultimately, it sloppy, rushed, convenient ending frustrated me and really had me wondering what exactly the director wants us to take away from this epic tale which covers 60 years.

The plot is overloaded with all sorts of personal, psychological, familial malfunctions. It ends up tiring you rather than entertain or make one think. The development of the characters is a bit predictable even though they have many different hardships to undergo. The acting is excellent without an exception and the aesthetics of the film is brilliant. I'd say it's like a crush test for yourself to see how you'll react and what you think intuitively about all that's going on.