La Communion solennelle (1977)
Directed by René Féret

Film Review

An unashamed nostalgia fest, La Communion solennelle was the first in a series of autobiographical films written and directed by René Féret that record the experiences of his childhood and family.  It was followed by Baptême (1988), Promenades d'été (1992) and L'Enfant du pays (2003), forming a quartet of intimate low-key dramas that provide a gently engaging chronicle of the lives of ordinary French folk over the past century.  Féret's filmmaking career began with the critically acclaimed Histoire de Paul (1975), which earned him the prestigious Prix Jean Vigo. More recently, he has found comparable success with his thoughtful biopic on Mozart's sister, Nannerl, la soeur de Mozart (2012).

La Communion solennelle is far from being a conventional family drama.  It is a patchwork quilt of a film, comprising numerous brief episodes loosely woven together in the manner of a haphazard living photograph album.  These are inter-cut into a lively sur-le-vif depiction of a family meal in the country, which, filmed in an improvisational manner, achieves an astonishing degree of immediacy.  We are not given the opportunity to get to know any of the characters in any great depth (and this is perhaps the film's main shortcoming) - they merge into a pretty anonymous block of humanity, a crowd from which we feel permanently excluded.  There are plenty of familiar faces in this ebullient ensemble - Philippe Léotard, Nathalie Baye, Myriam Boyer, Marcel Dalio, Ariane Ascaride and Philippe Nahon - but they remain strangers to us.  Despite his best intentions, Féret overwhelms us with too many faces and too much incident.

Whilst the film is hard to engage with at a deep level, it still has considerable charm, and Jean-François Robin's beautiful photography (curiously evocative of Jean Renoir's Partie de campagne) exerts a magnetic attraction on us that keeps us interested even though the narrative struggles to form a satisfying and coherent whole.  The nostalgia feel is heightened by a ballad from Serge Reggiani, and this adds to the film's appeal.  La Communion solennelle may not be particularly memorable and it pales in comparison with much of the director's subsequent work, but it provides a pleasing trip down memory lane.  If nothing else, it offered audiences of the time a very welcome change from the slew of violent hard-edged policiers that were dominating French cinema in the mid-to-late 1970s.

Film Synopsis

Towards the mid-1970s, a large family get-together is arranged at a tranquil spot in the north of France.  Attending the out-of-doors communion dinner are around thirty people who span three generations, their life stories stretching right back to the 1890s.  The tables are decked with the most succulent of foods and a mood of carefree conviviality reigns as the guests renew their acquaintance and exchange their recollections of past incidents.

The memories flow as freely as wine, providing a veritable banquet for the soul.  First loves, marriages, betrayals, separations and many other personal dramas, some set against the terrible backdrop of war - all the tragedy of human experience, lightened by more humorous episodes.  Gradually, out of this flurry of gilded anecdotes, a picture begins to emerge - the story of one ordinary family making its way through one of mankind's most turbulent centuries...