FRANTZ

France, 2016, 104 minutes, Black and white/ Colour.
Paula Beer, Pierre Ninney, Ernst Stotzner, Marie Gruber, Johann von Bulow, Anton von Lucke, Cyrielle Clair.
Directed by François Ozon.

For over 20 years French director, François Ozon, has made a variety of films, mostly serious, a touch of the musical, some comedy. This is one of his most touching films.

In the early 1930s, director, Ernst Lubitsch made a war drama, Broken Lullaby. This forms the basis for Frantz.

The principal setting is a town in Germany, 1918-1919, the impact of the defeat of Germany in World War I, the memories of so many young men who were set eagerly to war and who died. We see a young woman walking through the town, going to the cemetery to put flowers on the memorial headstone for her dead fiance. The young woman, Anna, lives in her fiance’s house, his father a doctor, his mother a kindly woman, all of them grieving. The name of the dead son is Frantz, with pacifist views, an artist and a violinist.

Anna sees flowers at the gravestone and then a young visitor. She tracks him down at the local hotel and discovers that his name is Adrien. Adrien comes to the house, wanting to knock on the door but is unable. When Anna meets him, she encourages him to come but, when the doctor hears that he is French, he refuses at first to come to meet him. While the doctor his grieving, he is also bitter against the French, something fostered when he goes to the local tavern and has a drink with the other fathers of young men who have not returned.

He eventually does speak to Adrien who recounts to the family his memories of Frantz, times in Paris, Frantz’s interest in art, a painting by Manet which he cherished – although it is a painting of a suicide. Listening to Adrien has an effect on the doctor who comes to realise that it was the parents who were eager to send their children to war, but the adult generation supplied the weapons for the war, the weapons that were the occasion with their children’s deaths.

It should be noted that basically the film is in black-and-white but there are a variety of colour sequences, especially the flashbacks in Paris, and, more sombrely, for flashbacks to war in the trenches.

As Adrien becomes more involved with the family, he becomes uneasy and decides to leave.

What Adrien has told the family is not exactly exact and he wants to explain to Frantz’s parents his relationship with their son. Anna offers to do this but glosses over the truth, leaving the parents with Adrien’s happy memories and stories.

The parents are eager that Anna go to France to meet Adrien who has not responded to her letters – and finds that he comes from a wealthy family, is able to track him down at his mother’s estate, realising that she has developed affections for Adrien. She is helped in her commitment by going to confession to a local priest who encourages her not to tell the truth to the parents.

Ozon is able to involve his audience very emotionally in the situations, with the characters, compassion for the parents, especially for the doctor who comes to realise the enormity of a country sending its sons to war and to their deaths, to Anna and her feelings, to Adrien and his wanting to visit the family – and, as with so many stories from France ln the war, there is not an entirely happy ending.

1. The films of Ozon, the variety, the humanity?

2. 1919, recreation of the period, in Germany, in France, the German town, homes, bars, streets, the countryside? Paris, the Opera, the Louvre for, the streets? The country mansion? The train journeys? Costumes and decor? The atmosphere? The musical score, classics, atmospheric background?

3. Photography, the use of black-and-white, the colour, the transitions, the past and the present, the happy and the sad, the War sequences? The effect of each style Anna the response?

4. The title, Frantz, 23, German, his father urging him to enlist, sent to the front, his pacifist views, growing up, his room, the violin? Love for Anna, engaged, the plans for marriage, the letters between them, the rose? At the opening of the film, dead? The flashbacks? Adrian’s fiction? Seen in the mirror? In Anna’s dream? A strong presence, for his parents, their love, brief? Anna? For Adrien?

5. The film is Anna’s story, Paula Beer and her presence, the opening, the streets, a sombre dress, walking, buying the flowers, looking at the dress and the shop (and the mother later buying it for her), going to the grave, the fresh flowers, her enquiries? In her fiance’s home, the parents treating her as a daughter? Magda, practical? The father, doctor, his clients, discussions with Kreutz, Kreutz and his pro—German stances?

6. Adrien coming to the door, leaving? Anna seeing him at the cemetery? Staying at the hotel, enquiries, the foreigner? His going to see the doctor, being rejected without his being able to say anything? Anna, the invitation, his coming to the house, meeting the parents, talking, their coaxing him to more stories, the memories, in colour, the Louvre, the Monet painting, playing the violin, joy? The effect of the parents? His walking with Anna, the countryside, going for the swim? Inviting her to the dance? The hostility of the Germans? Anna, supporting him, her dress, dancing with him, the waltz? His dancing with the other girls? The growing friendship? The dinner, his not arriving, at the cemetery, his telling Anna the truth, offering to talk to the parents, Anna not allowing him, her going to the station, the farewell?

7. The character of the mother, practical and genial? Her grief? Hans, as a doctor, the initial rejection, meeting with the Germans at the bar, wanting to buy the beer, their antagonism, his talking about their all sending their sons to war, and providing the ammunition? But his joy, hopes, the comfort?

8. Anna, seen in silhouette talking to the parents, audiences thinking she had told them, yet her not telling? Her explaining to Adrien that she had told them? Her grief, her world, going to the water, entering, her wanting to drown herself, not being able to swim, the being rescued? The subsequent letters? Reading them to the parents – and inventing the letters?

9. Her going to the church, the priest, confession, her telling the truth, the priest saying she had pure intentions, not to tell the parents the truth, giving her absolution?

10. The letters, the lies, the effect? Anna, her illness? The parent urging her to go to Paris?

11. The decision, her travelling, the parents’ hopes, the feelings, the scenes of travel in 1919?

12. Paris, the city, having the information about Adrien’s address, the sleazy atmosphere? His leaving? Going to the opera, the enquiries, going to the performance? The military records, the record of the uncle, his heroism in the past, his suicide,, going to visit his wife, the information about Adrien?

13. Going to the mansion, meeting his mother? Adrien, his riding, greeting, happy to see Anna, inviting her to stay, the room? The surprise at Fanny’s presence, the bond with Adrien and Fanny? The engagement?

14. The dinner, Fanny, the dress, the past story about the couple, Anna deciding to leave?

15. Anna, her feelings, with Adrien, the farewell? Her letter, deciding to stay in Paris? Sadness and her future?