Cinema history hasn’t exactly been littered with lesbian love stories until recent years with the high-profile critical hits like ‘Blue is the Warmest Colour’ and ‘Carol’. ‘Summertime’ attempts to follow that trend and it has received a lot of praise, but in my mind it doesn’t work as well.
It is set in 1971, with a good reason as the political changes at the time play a key role in the story, though pleasingly avoiding too many clichés involving wacky clothes and hair. Izïa Higelin stars as Delphine, a young woman brought up on a farm, hiding her sexuality, who has moved to Paris. There she meets Carole (Cécile De France) a very active member of a womens’ liberation group. Carole initially seems to be happy with her life with her boyfriend and resists Delphine’s advances. But Delphine is persistent and soon the two fall helplessly in love.
It is the depiction of Delphine’s time in Paris – the initial stages of the relationship and especially the activities of the group of like winded women that are the best parts of this film. However, once Delphine is forced to go back to her parents’ farm, with Carole following her soon afterwards, the film gets a bit bogged down. It becomes a much more familiar story with Delphine’s suspicious Mum, a local lad who is in love with her, and lecherous farmers. The truth is I started to lose interest in the on again off again relationship between the two women. Having said that, Higelin’s performance is exceptional throughout and that alone kept me watching. It is a superb performance of a young woman trying to understand her place in the world.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10