'2 Autumns, 3 Winters' DVD: A Seasoned French Story of '30 (and 20)-somethings'

The wide variety of (mostly foreign) independent films that Film Movement offers the general public and members of its uber-awesome Film of the Month Club is one aspect of this enterprise that makes it so special. You name the genre, and chances are excellent that it has already released a movie from that category and has more up its sleeve. It is equally certain that you will enjoy the selection.


The very Franco vibe of "2 Autumns, 3 Winters," which Film Movement is releasing on DVD on June 17 2014, makes it a perfect example of the aforementioned range of club releases. The proverbial basic premise is that early-30s hero/primary narrator Arman is an art school graduate who is still trying to find himself when he literally runs into slightly younger Amelie while they are separately jogging in a Paris park.

Arman experiencing amour at first sight based on this brief encounter has him both following up this inaugural exercise effort with regular sessions that are designed to meet (but hopefully not run into) Amelie again. This campaign provides some of the best humor in "Autumns."

The following clip, courtesy of YouTube, of the trailer for "Autumns" expertly conveys the "Frenchness" of the film and the universal themes of love, friendship, and death that it communicates.

The next meeting of our relatively young lovers is thoroughly unexpected and under very unromantic circumstances. However, the reaction of Arman to the situation upon which he stumbles leads to dating Amelie. This leads to the ups and downs that fictional and real couples alike experience.

The secondary couple in "Autumn" consists of Benjamin, who is a friend of Arman, and Katia. They meet when a freak stroke that young Benjamin experiences places him in the care of even younger Katia. A wonderfully surreal aspect of the tale of Benjamin is that the stroke triggers an ability to communicate in a brand-new way.

The fact that writer/director Sebastien Betbeder bases the characters on himself and those in his life during his 20s and 30s validates the sense that "Autumns" has a very real feel to it. It seems that we either have been (and perhaps still are) one of the characters or that they strongly remind us of someone for whom we at least would take a splashed puddle.

You almost certainly will laugh, may not cry, but will enjoy "Autumns."

The monthly bonus short film "Voyage D'Affaires" is a perfect companion for "Autumns." This fellow French film has a man checking in for a week-long hotel stay soon after learning that his girlfriend is leaving him for a man who is more spontaneous than our hero.

Soon after checking in, our hero finds a literal boudoir photo of a presumed prostitute with her telephone number printed on it. The desire of the hotel guest to prove his ability to be spontaneous prompts dialing the number and launching into a hilarious monolog about wanting to meet up with the woman in the photo. The final line of this 11-minute gem is fall-on-the-floor funny.

Le fin regarding these two terrific examples of  modern French cinema is that they continue the excellent track record of Film Movement regarding both scouring the globe for the best movies out there and pairing them with a well-match short.

Anyone with questions regarding "Autumns" or Film Movement is encouraged to email me. You can also connect on Twitter via @tvdvdguy.