Before The Winter Chill (2013)

Lucie (Dame Kristin Scott Thomas) presumes that her husband Paul (Daniel Auteuil) - an older neurosurgeon - has an affair. Indeed, Paul behaves strange lately, but the truth behind it is dark and complicated.

Director:

Philippe Claudel

Writer:

Philippe Claudel (screenplay)

Stars:

Daniel Auteuil, Kristin Scott Thomas, Leïla Bekhti

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Auteuil	...	Paul
Kristin Scott Thomas	...	Lucie
Leïla Bekhti	...	Lou
Richard Berry	...	Gérard
Vicky Krieps	...	Caroline
Jérôme Varanfrain	...	Victor
Anne Metzler	...	Zoé Gassard
Laure Killing	...	Mathilde
Laurent Claret	...	Denis - le directeur de la clinique
Annette Schlechter	...	Madame Malek
Jean-François Wolff	...	Le commandant Xavier Garin
Joël Delsaut	...	Le capitaine Thierry Weiler
Jacqueline Ghaye	...	Juliette
Pascale Noe Adam	...	Anouk (as Pascale Noé Adam)
Lucie Debay	...	Amie de Lou

Storyline

Lucie (Dame Kristin Scott Thomas) presumes that her husband Paul (Daniel Auteuil) - an older neurosurgeon - has an affair. Indeed, Paul behaves strange lately, but the truth behind it is dark and complicated.

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Plot Keywords:

sister sister relationship | neurosurgeon | marriage trouble | clinic | target | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

French visa # 134191.

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Goofs

When Paul tries to forces its way in Gérard's computer, we see him trying/guessing a few passwords, the last of which we can actually read on screen; Windows would not display actual password characters, only "*****"

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Soundtracks

Roses of Picardy
Composed by Haydn Wood
(1916)

User Reviews

upper-middle class ennui....

This film has many fine elements, but suffers from the same ennui as the couple it portrays. I picked this up at my library, and knew immediately I had seen it before, but couldn't remember the end, and had to ride the "fast forward" to get through it! It didn't get better with a second viewing! A bored neurosurgeon "hits a rough patch" with his trophy wife, who sublimates her loneliness with her trophy home and garden! It reminds me of a flaccid remake of Haneke's "Cache", with Auteuil reprising his role as the stone-walling husband, who is smitten by a young Moroccan woman, who may be stalking him with roses instead of surveillance! Kristin Scott Thomas plays the long-suffering wife, instead of Juliette Binoche.

The film also has a couple of disparate elements that could easily have been cut, mainly Lucie's psychotic sister, and a Polish patient's Holocast survival story.

This is a fine distraction, if you have nothing else to watch!

Details

Country:

France Luxembourg

Language:

French

Release Date:

27 November 2013 (France)

Also Known As:

Antes del frío invierno

Filming Locations:

Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,526,099

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les films du 24, Samsa Film, France 3 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1