Synopsis: Why have the dead suddenly returned…

One morning, a small French city wakes up to discover thousands of recently dead people walking into town. The reason why is a mystery and there is no time to look into it. Hasty reunions – some passionate, some strained – occur with their survivors. But can they be reintegrated into society when their jobs have been filled and their partners have moved on? As officials try to figure out what to do with them, the dead begin behaving in bizarre ways and it becomes apparent that the returnees are not exactly who they used to be.

Robin Campillo’s (co-writer of Time Out) directorial debut is a provocative look at how society copes with grief ad just how hard it is to let go.
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Les revenants 8.0

What would you do if your long-lost loved ones suddenly returned from the dead after many years? How would you reincorporate them in your life? How would you cope with the mix of emotions that would swirl through you?

How would you feel if they appeared exactly as they were when you last saw them, but, somehow, something was not quite the same? What if there was something inexplicably different about them, despite first appearances?

And what if you weren’t alone? What if this happened to countless thousands? How would society deal with the impact of a re-emerging mass of people who need to be reintegrated, who need places to live, things to do, …etc?

This is exactly the situation that we are faced with in ‘Les revenants’, a French drama that could at first glance appear to have a horror sensibility, but actually only entertains a slightly ominous quality – a quality that is strictly derived from the unexpected and unexplained.

In fact, a lot of questions should arise in circumstances such as these, but only precious few are dealt with in this film – most of which are related to how society copes with 13000 “new” people and how the families deal with it. Aside from this, the film keeps its focus on the interpersonal relationships – as opposed to the scientific or religious aspect of things.

There is no exploration of the reasons why these people have come back, where there were after death or how they could be alive again. As far as I’m concerned, this makes total sense: had the filmmakers delved into this area, the film would have become unbelievably long. Furthermore, it could have been off-putting because their answers would easily have clashed with the viewers’ expectations and beliefs. It was better to leave it alone.

Instead we are treated to three moving stories: a couple torn by the reappearance of their 6-year old son, an older man (who appears to be the mayor of this city – or, at least, a man of some importance) who is both frightened and unable to let go of his wife, and a woman who never wanted her husband back but was forced to accept him when he imposed himself into her life.

The acting is simply terrific from all the parties involved. It is credible and there is no doubt in the viewer’s mind that this is happening to these people. The direction is pretty straightforward, but efficient enough. The production is probably a mid-level affair, but they manage to make the most of their budget to craft a film that feels rather real.

My only issue is with the last bit of the script. Without spoiling anything, I found that the ending weakens the overall effect, as it morphs from a humanitarian quagmire into an X-Files episode. That was an issue for me on both viewings (because, yes, I believe it’s enjoyable more than once) and I don’t understand the choices that they made. Was it to wrap things up neatly? Was it to add momentum in the final reel? I don’t know, but it’s not to my liking.

However, the film does make for a great conversation-starter. I would have loved to see this film with a group and have a discussion about it afterwards, over beverages.

Because, really, what would you do?