Tout va bien, o s’en va

Tout va bien, on s’en va, is about the impact on three sisters of the return of their father, Louis, who left them 15 years earlier. The girls don’t only have different characters but they also have differing reactions to the their father’s return. Claire cant believe she’s having back her father but soon she realizes that she has to take care of him (he is suffering from losing the memory and that’s why he actually came back, to recognize them while he still can) and Beatrice (the careerwoman) for whom everything had been long over, there isn’t any reason why she should be remembering him again. The elder sister Laura didn’t know what to do (reject him or give him that second chance).

That pretty much sums up the plot - the film tries to present itself as a psychological study rather than a narrative. Unfortunately the main characters are difficult people and hard to like, and their reactions to their father’s return (ranging from total hostility to apparent acceptance) are hard to understand, as nothing is revealed about their former relationships. The film would have been much better if it had taken itself less seriously, and offered more to its audience - more plot, more background, and a more convincing exploration of its characters.

I admit that I didn’t understand why the ending was so. I even thought whether it was deliberate on the part of the director or not. Nonetheless, the movie was worthwhile.