La Pièce manquante (2014)
Directed by Nicolas Birkenstock

Film Review

In cinema drama the acute sense of loss that accompanies a bereavement is rarely as keenly felt as it is in this promising debut feature from up-and-coming film director Nicolas Birkenstock.   A bereavement doesn't have to be caused by death, it can equally be the result of one family member voluntarily walking away, for no apparent reason, never to be seen again.  What Birkenstock portrays, with surprising finesse and understanding for such a young auteur, is a family that is understandably torn apart by the latter form of loss, riven with guilt and a wrenching desire to make sense of what has happened.  It's a powerfully moving and nuanced low-key film, scripted and performed with the authenticity that is the hallmark of a fine piece of drama.

Birkenstock's lack of experience occasionally manifests itself in some scenes that feel a little overworked and lacking in spontaneity, but any such shortcomings are made up for by the trenchant realism of the performances, in particular those of Philippe Torreton, a French actor of considerable renown, and Armande Boulanger, a talented newcomer who looks set to become one of the next big things in French cinema, judging by her impressive work on this film.  Torreton makes it incredibly easy for us to identify with his character, the abandoned husband who must not only come to terms with his wife's inexplicable departure but also struggle to hold his disintegrating family together through a period of crisis.  Boulanger is simply stunning as the winsome teenager who is literally transformed before our eyes as her character steps up to the plate to fill the maternal void, her apparent resilience only just masking the deep scars that lie beneath.  For both Boulanger and Birkenstock La Pièce manquante represents an extremely auspicious debut, and we can be pretty certain that this will not be the last we hear of them.

Film Synopsis

One morning, Paula leaves the family home, abandoning her husband André and their two children, Violette and Pierre.  Scarcely able to take in what has happened, André tries to conceal the fact that his wife has left him from his entourage, even forcing his children to stay silent on the matter.  When summer comes, each of them must confront the pain of Paula's absence in his or her own way, a challenge that proves to be much harder than it might seem...