Summer of 85

Watch: Summer of 85

Unrated

6/18/20211h 41m

Theatrical Release (US)

Overview:

What do you dream of when you're 16-years-old and in a seaside resort in Normandy in the 1980s? A best friend? A lifelong teen pact? Scooting off on adventures on a boat or a motorbike? Living life at breakneck speed? No. You dream of death. Because you can't get a bigger kick than dying. And that's why you save it till the very end. The summer holidays are just beginning, and this story recounts how Alexis grew into himself.

Director:

François Ozon

Status:

Released

Language:

French

Buget:

$6,900,000.00

Revenue:

$3,600,000.00

Key words:

based on novel or book
sailing
normandy, france
motorcycle
teenage boy
lgbt
lgbt teen
burlesque
summer job
seaside town
1980s
philosophical
lyrical
complex
teenage protagonist
loving
gay theme
inspirational
wistful
boys' love (bl)
ambivalent
baffled
bewildered
bold
celebratory
complicated
exhilarated
familiar
forceful
hopeful

Cast

Félix Lefebvre

~ as ~

Alexis Robin

Benjamin Voisin

~ as ~

David Gorman

Philippine Velge

~ as ~

Kate

Valeria Bruni Tedeschi

~ as ~

Madame Gorman

Melvil Poupaud

~ as ~

Mr. Lefèvre

Isabelle Nanty

~ as ~

Madame Robin

Laurent Fernandez

~ as ~

Mr. Robin

Aurore Broutin

~ as ~

The Educator

Bruno Lochet

~ as ~

Bernard

Yoann Zimmer

~ as ~

Luc

View full cast & crew

Reviews (2)

SWITCH.
Written 4 year(s) ago
7
Francois Ozon's 'Summer of 85' is a bittersweet film, one that ultimately encourages its audience to embrace the joy and the heartache of first love, along with the ephemerality of having a life-changing presence in your life.
- Jake Watt
Read Jake's full article... https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-summer-of-85-a-refreshingly-nuanced-coming-of-age-story
CinemaSerf
Written 3 year(s) ago
7
Félix Lefebvre (who reminded me, here, of a young Charlie Hunnam in "Queer as Folk" (1999)) is sixteen year old "Alex" who takes his friend's dinghy out for a sail and gets caught in a thunderstorm that capsizes his boat. Luckily for him, Benjamin Voisin ("David") is nearby and tows him ashore and into his mother's recuperative bathtub! The next six weeks are now depicted in a cleverly interwoven mix of current and recent storylines as we realise that a tragedy has occurred and that the two young men had something of a relationship during the intervening period. On the face of it - it's just a gay coming of age drama, but Levebvre has an intensity and innocence about him. His performance as the young man who falls so completely and utterly in love is heart-rending, sincere and stylishly captured by the photography - and must remind all of us of that first, inexplicable, "love" that we may well still recall to this day. To be fair, it is easy to see why he fell for the charismatic, exciting "David" - who offers him profound changes to his life, and to the rather linear options that most of us faced at 16 - job or school - but the story is more nuanced than that and though it is certainly not without some fairly substantial holes and inconsistencies, it sort of works. The Cure's "In Between Days" and an oddly effective "Sailing" from Rod Stewart provide a remarkably potent soundtrack that resonates not just the moment, but the sentiment too. Not, maybe, Ozon's finest work but I suspect we may see more roles from his young star in the future.