Leaving

Catherine Corsini's Leaving begins with a bang. That being a shotgun fired by Kristin Scott Thomas in a plush home in the dead of night. However, we only hear said gunshot. Did she shoot someone? Something? Herself? To find out we then go back in time and pick up the story of Suzanne (Scott Thomas), a housewife in the south of France, who is on the verge of returning to work as a physiotherapist, only to begin an affair with a handyman (Ivan) which sets off a chain of events leading to the bullet firing ending/beginning. Despite this being a three hander it's Scott Thomas who hauls us through the emotional wringer with her performance as we see everything from her point of view. Interestingly, despite Suzanne's husband (played with authority by the ever reliable Yvan Attal) being a bit neglectful, there isn't much sympathy we actually give her for having an affair. However, as things start to go wrong for her and Ivan (admittedly via some contrived plotting), with their jobs not working out and her husband withholding his money from her, Scott Thomas' performance is so good she makes you feel sorry for. A scene where she desperately sells her watch for money at a petrol station is tragic. Corsini gets great mileage from Scott Thomas and a number of scenes in the film feel real and certainly believable due to the situations all three main characters find themselves in. However, Corsini doesn't move the story along at a quick enough pace. Fair enough if this was a two part TV series but not whilst you're sitting there thinking about the hard earned you've just spent. So, sex, drama, slow story, well acted. Hmm, did I mention this was a French film?


The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Worth watching for Scott Thomas alone, which just about makes up for Corsini's bland direction. Rating: 6/10.