Release Date (UK) – 2nd May 2011
Certificate (UK) – 15
Country – France
Director – Claude Lelouch
Runtime – 120 mins
Starring – Audrey Dana, Jacky Ido, Dominique Pinon
Over 10 years in production, What War May Bring (Ces amours-là) is an episodic war drama by Academy Award-winning director Claude Lelouch. Set for the most part in war-torn France, the film follows cinema usher Ilva Lemoine (Dana) as she is swept from one romantic encounter to the next through a series of flashbacks while she stands trial for the murder of her husband.
While the film is sold in some quarters as an action-filled war epic, fans of Saving Private Ryan should perhaps look elsewhere. While What War May Bring certainly does feature some small amount of action, including a (relatively poor) Normandy landing scene, the film’s heart is set very firmly on the side of drama.
What War May Bring is a film that asks the audience questions. The film asks us to put ourselves in the shoes of some of its most prominent characters, and ask ourselves what we would have done in a similar such situation. We must consider early on for example, whether we prioritise the individual or the state, and similarly whether we too would give up a life of creative freedom, if our own talent was the reason that our own life was saved while others were sent to die.
As a spotlight on the strange and often harrowing situations war forces upon people, What War May Bring is certainly an interesting piece. As the film progresses we are led to wonder whether young Ilva’s many relationships are a result of her situation, or indeed, her very being. Her relationship with the Nazi officer for example while explicitly sold as a bond of ‘love’, certainly seems opportunistic on Ilva’s part which would certainly suggest the former, though her search for the officer later in the film would suggest perhaps a deeper love than at first appears.
As a character piece then, What War May Bring works quite well. The characters are interesting and the story is certainly strong enough to keep the audience involved, even if at times it can seem excessively ‘baggy’ in places. Where the film perhaps fails however, is its motivation.
Suggested by many to be Claude Lelouch’s last film, I’m sorry to say What War May Bring often seems to come across as an overly self-absorbed attempt by the director to draw attention to his own work and leave his ‘final mark’ on the world of cinema. To this reviewer at least, when the direction of the film becomes more important than the film itself, the film can only suffer as a result. The opening and ending of the film especially seem too contrived — too blatant an attempt to try and be ‘clever’. If you want to document your life’s work, then make a documentary — don’t try and lever a montage of your earlier films into the film’s ending! If there’s one thing that is sure to distract, and indeed detract from a film, it’s the director deciding that he himself is going to become the star of the film.
If you’re looking for an interesting war drama set in occupied France then do give What War May Bring a look. As a character piece it works quite well. If like me however, and you struggle with films that try to be ‘artsy’ just for the sake of being ‘artsy’ then I would suggest there are certainly other, better war dramas out there.
What War May Bring is released on DVD and Blu-ray on 2 May 2011 – order it here
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