This little French film from Film Movement was originally called "Arrête ou je continue" (Stop or I'll continue): now it is IF YOU WON'T' I WILL.' It seems many viewers are missing the point of this very delicately composed eulogy on marriage. Written and directed by Sophie Fillières this is one of the more sensitive examinations of prolonged relationships or marriages whose glow has dimmed and needs to alter. Others have shown the bitter finality of divorce, the distancing that can end in mental and even physical abuse – exit paths for marriage. But this little exquisite film has the ability to observe the increasingly flattening of response to a couple as they find the spark of sensuality has faded along with the maturing of children and allowing their lives to supersede that of the couple's togetherness.
Pomme (Emmanuelle Devos) and Pierre (Mathieu Amalric) have been together a long time. Passion and spontaneity have given way to predictability and cold shoulders. On a hike together one afternoon, Pomme declares her independence by deciding to stay in the woods rather than return to an underwhelming life with Pierre. Pierre tries to get back to normal, despite his worry over her whereabouts and the indelible sense that he's missing his better half. Meanwhile, Pomme begins an extended meditation in the forest on where her own life should go next, with or without Pierre. In the end, both are left to contemplate the strength and meaning of each other's commitment.
If viewers find the film dissociative and lacking focus in the beginning – many feel they just don't understand what the film is doing at first – then that is likely the point Sophie Fillières is making: those little moments of chipping away at the bond of marriage that if unheeded result in fractures and dissolution are subtle. But with the assistance of both Devos and Amalric as the couple the film makes its poignant point extraordinarily well.
