Après l'amour: A messy French affair

Is it worth the time?

If you like old French melodrama where people stand around looking tragic in fancy clothes, sure. If you need your movies to move faster than a glacier, you’ll probably want to skip this. It’s definitely for the crowd that prefers conversation over explosions. 🍷

The whole premise is basically a giant, tangled web of who-is-cheating-on-who. Our protagonist is an art historian—naturally—who finds himself distracted by a saleslady. Meanwhile, his wife isn't exactly sitting around waiting for him to come home. It’s the kind of premise that could be a farce, but they play it surprisingly straight.

I found myself zoning out during the long, wordy monologues. Then, suddenly, someone would say something so blunt that I’d snap back to attention. It’s an uneven watch, for sure.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Après l'amour (1931) through its definitive frames.

The Baby Paradox

The weirdest part? The babies. They show up right when the tension is at its breaking point. It’s almost comical how the narrative forces these kids into the plot to make the adults act like adults. It reminded me a bit of the domestic messiness you see in The Birth of a Man, though this one lacks that same punch.

The acting is very… stagey. You can tell this came from a play. Everyone is constantly posing, like they’re waiting for a painter to capture their misery before they speak. At one point, Gaby Morlay does this look toward a window that lasts for what felt like an entire calendar year. It was painfully deliberate.

• The lighting makes everyone look like a ghost.
• The interior sets feel like they’re made of cardboard.
• There’s a vase in the background that I’m 90% sure changes positions between cuts.

It’s not a masterpiece. It’s not even particularly revolutionary for its time. But there’s something about the way these characters lie to themselves that keeps you watching. They’re all so convinced they’re the hero of their own sad little story. 🙄

If you’re looking for a breezy watch, look elsewhere. This movie is heavy with the scent of old curtains and bad decisions. Still, I’ve seen worse ways to spend an afternoon if you’re into the history of cinema.