Peut-être (1999)
Directed by Cédric Klapisch

Film Review

After three successful social comedies (which include the popular Chacun cherche son chat), Cédric Klapisch's first foray into a genre film comes as something of a surprise, but also a slight disappointment.   Peut-être is a rather messy hotch-potch of traditional French comedy-drama and borrowed science-fiction ideas.  Overwhelmed by its sense of scale and surrealist fantasy, the film provides a rather extravagant way of addressing a very real social concern: that young adults are becoming increasingly put off by the idea of parenthood.  Despite his (by then) solid track record, Klapisch had difficulty getting financing for the film.  The French televsion companies did not not believe the film was viable and it was only with the considerable support of Warner Brothers that the film saw the light of day.

The biggest problem with this Peut-être is that, whilst its concept is promising, it just doesn't have enough content to sustain ninety minutes of screen time.  After ten minutes in the sand-soaked Paris of the 2070s (which is revealed quite early on into the film), it simply runs out of ideas, and the barren desert setting merely emphasises the vacuity of the plot.  There are no furthur plot developments after Arthur's son has made his plea to be conceived - if you exclude lots of silly running about - and it is a slow crawl to its sentimental and rather obvious conclusion.  And whose damned stupid idea was it to give away the film's main surprise element in the film's poster?

Peut-être would - perhaps - have worked better if there had been an element of doubt as to the reality of what Arthur was experiencing.  It would make sense if Arthur's jaunt to Paris of the future was a drug-induced fantasy.  But no - everything is presented as solid reality, without the slightest hint of ambiguity.  Consequently, very little of the film makes any sense.  Via the most absurd of plot contrivances, Arthur is physically transported into the future, where he is forced to enact a lame version of “Back to the Future”.   That would have been pardonable if the central character was strong enough to make the ensuing drama credible and interesting - but he isn't. Romain Duris is a promising young actor but just does not have what it takes to carry the film through, and his co-stars are equally uninspiring. Jean-Paul Belmondo's presence in this film is just one absurdity too many - there is no conviction in his portrayal and he has absolutely no rapport with the rest of the cast.   Belmondo is unquestionably one of the greatest figures in French cinema, but here he just isn't given the opportunity to shine.

Given that there is so much which is obviously wrong with this film, what then is its appeal?  Well, for one thing it is imbued with that very distinctive Klapisch sense of poetry and humanity, something which gives the film its social relevance and the feel of a latter-day parable.  The importance of family is a recurring theme in the director's work and here it is pivotal part of the film: the pros and cons of family life are presented with insight and feeling in the bleak futuristic setting.  The set design and special effects are also impressive and give the film its very strong visual feel.  Science-fiction is the genre in which French cinema is traditionally weakest, but Peut-etre illustrates what can be achieved if the artistic vision is strong enough and if sufficient resources can be found to realise that vision.

Film Synopsis

New Years Eve 1999.  Arthur, a 24-year old science fiction fanatic, meets up with his friends at a lively party to welcome in the new millennium.  As the clock counts down to midnight, he sneaks away to the bathroom to make love with his girlfriend, Lucy.  When she reveals she wants to have a baby, Arthur aborts at the last moment.  Returning to the bathroom a short while later, Arthur notices sand falling in through a hole in the ceiling.  Climbing up through the hole, he finds himself in a totally different world - Paris seventy years in the future, half-buried in sand.  More bizarrely, he is confronted by his son, Ako, and his grandchildren.  Ako informs Arthur that unless he returns to his own time and makes Lucy pregnant, he and his family will cease to exist.  Anxious about the prospect of becoming a parent at his age and on his salary, Arthur refuses.  With time running out, Ako tries desperately to convince Arthur to change his mind…