For those that attend film festivals, there are many patrons who hope to catch a film with a bizarre storyline that looks good. One film that attempts to do it is the France film Last Summer. It’s a bizarre story that comes with unexpected twists.

Anne is an attorney in family law. She knows the system well and what works and what doesn’t in the Corts, but she will fight for her clients. Especially children. Anne is well-respected with how she works with rape cases, especially those involving minors. Anne is married to Pierre and has two adopted daughters from China. She does a very good job of balancing family life with her career.

Things change when Theo enters the picture. Theo is the 17 year-old son of Pierre’s from his first marriage. Theo is a troubled boy frequently getting in and out of trouble. Pierre is hoping a summer stay at his house will help improve him and improve his relationship with his son. In fact Pierre picks Theo up after his release from a detention centre. Anne is hoping to have this time to establish a mother-son relationship with her stepson.

Over time, Theo has no problem with being one of the family. He comes to family occasions well. He’s able to be a fun brother to his step-sisters. Anne has also found Theo to be a lot of fun to be around. It seems like they’ve developed a good relationship…or it’s something more. Anne is attracted to Theo and lets him know it. Theo is attracted to Anne in turn. Their closeness becomes more. A lot more.

Only problem is secrets don’t stay secret for long. The first exposure comes at a family birthday party. Anne’s sister catches them too close. She is disgusted and hurls an insult. Soon Pierre hears the news from Theo. Anne insists it’s all a lie. Whenever Pierre tries to bring it up, Anne knows of the right thing to say. When Theo confronts her in her office, she levels with him. She reminds him of his bad reputation and that no one will believe him. As time passes, Anne has successfully convinced Pierre and her sister that what they thought all along isn’t true. Soon Anne has one last encounter with Theo, which shocks everyone in the end.

Now this film is something. Very rarely do we have a film about incest created. And rightly so. Incest is a topic that almost all of us find disturbing and still churns a lot of people’s stomachs. This is a bizarre case. Theo is the stepson of Anne. Even if you get yourself questioning your morality as he’s not a blood relative of hers, he’s still the son of Pierre. Theo is a boy Anne is not to be attracted to in more ways than one. Seeing how the romance that is not to be unravel itself is enough to shock the pants out of the audients.

The funny thing about this film is that this film appears be about an incident of incest but if you look closer, you’ll see the film looks to be about Anne. Anne is a lawyer and an advocate: a respected woman who appears to champion the causes of exploited children. Soon she finds herself in a ‘tangle’ with Theo — a tangle that would lead anyone in the hottest of hot water — but she’s able to state her innocence and successfully convince those closest to her that it’s all a lie. We often forget that is the profession of lawyers and politicians: the power of the talk. Talk that wins cases, talk that wins minds, talk that can even trump proven truths. Anne has that ability to deliver that type of talk power and we see it throughout. She has the talk to win cases for young girls in family court, talk that can convince her husband and even her sister who catches her in the act that there’s no incest, and talk to convince Theo he won’t win his case against her. Usually a film about such an incident would be a film consisting of the incident, arrest, trial, conviction and any aftermath. I think that theme of Anne and the power of her talk may be the reason why the film ended in the way it did.

This is an incredible film by Catherine Breillat. Breillat is not well known outside of France. Her films in France have been known for decades to do about sexuality and family conflict. Her most notable works are 2001’s Fat Girl and 2007’s The Last Mistress. This film which she directed and co-wrote with Pascal Bonitzer is her first release in ten years and is actually an adaptation of a 2019’s Danish film Queen Of Hearts. Breillat does a great job in capturing the intensities of moments and having only us the viewer knowing the truth of the story. She knows how to capture what’s at stake should Anne be found guilty and expose a power play between the accuser and the accused.

The thing to make a film like this work is the acting. Lea Drucker was excellent as Anne, the one calling the shots. She knew how to make Anne the imposing figure that she is with the ability to be convincing to everyone even if we know it’s all a lie. Olivier Rabourdin was great as the husband who’s struggling to make sense of the whole situation of whether this really happened, what type of father he is. He was excellent at playing the man caught in the middle. Also great is newcomer Samuel Kircher. He gives Theo his recklessness, his innocence and his vulnerability without missing a beat. Very well done for a first performance.

Let’s just say Last Summer is a film of intrigue. It’s a film that features of an unspeakable happening and it comes with a lot of surprises including an ending nobody anticipated to happen. It’s a film that will get you thinking of what you saw over and over again!