Everything Went Fine
The latest film from François Ozon is crossing my eyeballs as I find myself in a similar situation as its main character. As we get older, it is more likely than not that we will find ourselves in a reverse role with our parents when we were children- we will be their caregivers, helping them pass away gracefully while we find ourselves adjusting our lives around their needs. Hopefully, we have a support system to lean on, but what if their needs put us in a precarious situation? That is at the heart of “Everything Went Fine,” and I found myself engaged every step of the way.
“Everything Went Fine” is based on a novel by Emmanuèle Bernheim, who was inspired by her own life to tell the story of a woman who must reckon with her complicated history with her father when he has a stroke. That becomes more difficult when her father, André (André Dussollier)- now sick and half-paralyzed- asks her to help him end his life. Apart from the complicated question itself, French law is very specific about assisted suicide. Can Emmanuèle (Sophie Marceau) make this decision with her sister, Pascale (Géraldine Pailhas), or can she talk her father out of it?
What does it mean to be a child, and caregiver, to a parent at the end of their lives? Are we able to clearly see what our parents need/want when faced with their mortality, or will our emotions lead us to think selfishly in such moments? The screenplay by Ozon and Philippe Piazzo is well-observed in the emotions of that moment, and situation, and it hit hard with me personally. In December, we found out my mother-in-law was stopping dialysis over the holidays; she passed away on New Year’s Day, but you could tell, she was ready to go, and as sad as it was for her family, they understood. Over the past few years, I’ve become responsible for my own other’s health decisions, and while there are some I wish I could change, ultimately, I think I’ve balanced her desires with my attempts to keep her healthy. With her dementia, that pressure is compounded. André is much more lucid in his thinking than my mother, but that’s part of what makes Emmanuèle’s decisions that much harder. The dynamic between Marceau and Dussollier captures the authenticity of this relationship beautifully, and even when the film moves into some lighter moments, the truth of the moment for everyone is still effortlessly captured.
The past three Ozon films I’ve seen- including this one- have made me remember what a compelling talent he is. The earlier films of his I’ve seen feel a bit looser and darkly funny, but the way he’s built the emotions in the last three films is a great indicator of not only how a filmmaker can shift and mature over the years, but also how they can maintain their early, wicked streak in their later years. You feel it in “Summer of ‘85,” and there are moments here where Andre is very much having fun at the expense of everyone here. This might be my favorite film to date of his for that reason and more.
