Event

Tahoe Film Fest - Frantz

Frantz - France (2016)

Directed by: Francois Ozon

Set in Germany and France in the immediate aftermath of the First World War, (1914-1918), Frantz recalls the mourning period that follows great national tragedies as seen through the eyes of the wars lost generation. Anna, a bereft young German woman whose fiance, Frantz, was killed during trench warfare, and Adrien, a French veteran of the war who shows up mysteriously in her town, placing flowers on Frantzs grave. Adriens presence is met with resistance by the small community still reeling from Germanys defeat, yet Anna gradually gets closer to the handsome and melancholy young man, as she learns of his deep friendship with Frantz, conjured up in evocative flashbacks. What follows is a surprising exploration of how Ozons characters wrestle with their conflicting feelings - survivors guilt, anger at ones losses, the overriding desire for happiness despite everything that has come before, and the longing for sexual, romantic and familial attachments. Ozon drew his inspiration from a post WWI play that inspired the 1932 film adaptation of Broken Lullaby by Ernst Lubitsch.

Winner - Marcello Mastroianni Award - Best Young Actress - Venice Film Festival

French with English subtitles

Print courtesy of Music Box Films