****! A beautifully wry, perfectly paced film
— Hank Sartin, Time Out Chicago
*****! Wonderful Drama.
— Michael Upchurch, Seattle Times
Profoundly affecting...a work of singular loveliness.
— Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal
*****! YOU MUST REMEMBER TO SEE IT. AS BRIGHTLY ALIVE A MOVIE AS THE SEASON WILL OFFER.
— Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out NY
A MASTERPIECE. HAUNTINGLY BEAUTIFUL. A meditation on art and eternal life.
— Frederic Bonnaud, New York Magazine
A near perfect blend of humor and heartbreak, a lyrical masterwork... Assayas creates that rare summer movie -- one that matters. Lots of films are called haunting, Summer Hours truly is.
— David Edelstein, NEW YORK TIMES
Watching Summer Hours is like taking a swim in a beautiful, seemingly placid lake...deeply nuanced and strikes just the right emotional notes.
— Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
Assayas's best film... invokes the supreme figure of French Cinema: none other than Jean Renoir
— Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
EXTRAORDINARY. Packed nearly to bursting with rich meaning and deep implication. The assurance and aesthetic poise of the film make it quietly ravishing...a masterpiece.
— Claudia Puig, USA Today
GRADE: A. Brims with life and loveliness
— A.O. Scott, Film Comment
Presented by IFC Films | France | May 15th, 2009 | 102 MINS | UR
One of the most celebrated films in World Cinema today, and a standout hit of the Toronto, AFI and New York Film Festivals, SUMMER HOURS (L’HEURE D’ÉTÉ) is Olivier Assayas’ (IRMA VEP, LES DESTINÉES) latest film superbly acted by some of France’s finest performers – Academy Award®-winner Juliette Binoche, Charles Berling and Jérémie Rénier.
The divergent paths of three forty-something siblings collide when their mother, heiress to her uncle’s exceptional 19th-century art collection, dies suddenly. Left to come to terms with themselves and their differences, Adrienne (Binoche), a successful New York designer, Frédéric (Berling), an economist and university professor in Paris, and Jérémie (Rénier), a dynamic businessman in China, confront the end of childhood, their shared memories, background and unique vision of the future. Incisively written, Assayas’ new film moves effortlessly through its narrative with all the grace of Renoir at the height of his powers.
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Awards
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Official Selection
New York Film Festival 2008
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Official Selection
AFI Film Festival 2008
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Official Selection
Toronto Film Festival 2008
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