Retour au paradis: A strange little time capsule

Is it worth your time?

If you have a thing for black-and-white French films that feel like they were filmed in someone’s dusty attic, then sure, dive in. It’s definitely for the patient viewer who doesn't mind a story that wanders off the path. If you need pacing, clear stakes, or, you know, a plot that makes sense by the halfway mark, you’re probably going to hate it. 🤷‍♂️

It’s not exactly Nous ne sommes plus des enfants, but it has that same kind of weird, slightly melancholic energy. Sometimes the film just stops to let a character look out a window for way too long. I found myself checking my phone, then looking back up, and they were still just standing there. It's almost hypnotic, or maybe just lazy.

The vibe

There's a scene near the middle where a conversation happens in a cafe that feels like it lasts for an eternity. The audio crackles just enough to remind you that this isn't exactly high-budget stuff. You can almost hear the gears of the camera whirring in the background if you turn your volume up. It’s kind of charming, in a low-stakes way.

• The lighting is surprisingly moody for what it is.
• The dialogue feels very 'written,' if that makes sense. Nobody actually talks like this.
• I’m still not entirely sure why the second act exists.

The performances are... well, they're definitely performances. Jean Tissier has this way of blinking that makes him seem like he’s trying to solve a math equation in his head while delivering his lines. It’s distracting, but in a funny way. I kept waiting for him to break character, but he never did. Dedicated, I guess.

The whole thing feels a bit like watching The Sophomore if it had been directed by someone who had just read a bunch of existential poetry. It's trying to be deep, but it usually ends up being just a bit strange. It doesn't quite reach the heights of something like Zemlya zhazhdet, but it has its moments of weird, accidental beauty.

At the end of the day, it's a movie that exists. It happened. I watched it. Maybe you will too. 🎞️