"Elle s'en va" or "On My Way" is written and directed by Emmanuelle Bercot and pretty much as a whole a Catherine Deneuve showcase fittingly for her 70th birthday. She is in almost every scene in the movie and her character is the only one that is truly explored in depth.
It starts as we see Deneuve's character owning a restaurant and quickly being fed up with coordinating the whole process. So she goes into her her own form of retirement. Actually, early on, I expected the restaurant background to play a more significant role in the film, but things turned out differently. Unfortunately, aside from Madame Deneuve's good performance, the film suffers a lot in other area. The performances from those who play her daughter and grandson are not convincing at all and many characters are simply too much in the face instead of quietly subtle. As a result of that, quite some credibility is lost. The writing was not outstanding either and constant random changes in Deneuve's mood (positive as well as negative) make it look a bit ridiculous as the film goes on. Admittedly, it would probably have been even worse with another actress in the main role. Deneuve saved the movie to an extent.
The choice of music was occasionally spot-on, but sometimes off the mark too, which is a bit disappointing as the score is usually really strong in French films. One of the emotional highlights intended by the makers was probably the road trip with Deneuve and her grandchild, but even here it was not as effective as it could have been. As a whole, I can't really recommend this movie. Only one for French cinema lovers and Deneuve completionists.
It starts as we see Deneuve's character owning a restaurant and quickly being fed up with coordinating the whole process. So she goes into her her own form of retirement. Actually, early on, I expected the restaurant background to play a more significant role in the film, but things turned out differently. Unfortunately, aside from Madame Deneuve's good performance, the film suffers a lot in other area. The performances from those who play her daughter and grandson are not convincing at all and many characters are simply too much in the face instead of quietly subtle. As a result of that, quite some credibility is lost. The writing was not outstanding either and constant random changes in Deneuve's mood (positive as well as negative) make it look a bit ridiculous as the film goes on. Admittedly, it would probably have been even worse with another actress in the main role. Deneuve saved the movie to an extent.
The choice of music was occasionally spot-on, but sometimes off the mark too, which is a bit disappointing as the score is usually really strong in French films. One of the emotional highlights intended by the makers was probably the road trip with Deneuve and her grandchild, but even here it was not as effective as it could have been. As a whole, I can't really recommend this movie. Only one for French cinema lovers and Deneuve completionists.