A Summer's Tale (Conte d'été)

Eric Rohmer’s romantic comedy, A Summer's Tale, feels like a poetic scrutiny on fate, human nature and sex, a sort of New Wave take on summer love. SPECIAL OFFER: Enjoy a free trial, get 20% off your subscription to Fandor (only $8 a month) with FrenchFlicks, and watch the movie now!

Eric Rohmer’s romantic comedy, A Summer's Tale, feels like a poetic scrutiny on fate, human nature and sex, a sort of New Wave take on summer love. 

Gaspard is really having trouble with finding his purpose on this earth. He finds himself transparent and doesn’t really like to socialize. He is charming but lacks outgoing charisma, intelligent but too introspective. In vacation in Brittany, he's hoping his sort-of girlfriend, the fickle Léna, will join him there. But his encounter with two local girls will change the course of his summer, and his perception of love.

A Summer’s Tale, like every other film of Rohmer's, is not exactly fast-paced. It takes its time, and it features a lot of scenes where the main characters wander around, pondering the meaning of life. Even so, the film never feels too verbose. 

The cinema of Rohmer is always a pleasure to listen to, as well as to watch. A Summer’s tale is a poetic testament to misunderstood young adults, and the power of fate and love.

"Astute, unhurried and gently amusing, it will be welcomed by the director's fans while serving as a fine introduction for those who know him not." - Los Angeles Time

"A Summer's Tale has room to focus on Rohmer's brilliance at revealing human nature through articulate, multidimensional characters, perfectly cast, who in some ways seem to exist outside of time." - New York Times

SPECIAL OFFER: Enjoy a free trial, get 20% off your subscription to Fandor (only $8 a month) with FrenchFlicks, and watch the movie now!

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