On a sweltering day in the south of France; an alluring girl; her troubled boyfriend; her mysterious mother and a gruff neighbor collide in tragedy as their secrets lead to a series of shocking events.

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At first sight ,"Apres Le Sud" would display a Robert Guédigian influence: location in the South of France,average persons,whose paths meet ...

But further acquaintance shows it is not so: Guédigian's hope against hope and shades of optimism have disappeared . "Après Le sud" is a somber work Under the bright sun and the blue sky of French South.

The four characters seem to have lost their illusions ;the obese mother stuffs herself with Arab pastries while trying a medical treatment:she will remind you of Ellen Burstyn's desperate struggle with food in "requiem for a dream".Her daughter is a clerk in a supermarket ,a place she finds stifling :she's pregnant by a young Italian,Luigi ,himself a loser , who never succeeds in talking this over with her before the tragedy .The last character is a grumpy lonely old man who seems educated and who appreciates classical music.There's a scene where he is strip-searched in the supermarket by two hateful managers who humiliate him and whose behavior is really beyond the pale:taunting an incontinent old man,who is twice older than them! All this and more leads to an irreparable drama ,with a final scene recalling that of Pasolini's "Mamma Roma" .

Too bad the director succumbed to a contemporary vice: non-linear story,flashbacks,flash forwards,scenes showed twice (the latter would be interesting if we had a different point of view).This might be a little off-putting for the audience .

Nevertheless " Après Le sud" gets off the beaten track and thus can be considered an estimable work.

Dedicated to Cyril Collard ("Les Nuits Fauves ",1992)

male frontal nudity|male nudity|penis|male full frontal nudity|boyfriend|pubic hair|male pubic hair|marseille provence|marseille|female full frontal nudity|underwear|stealing a cd|stealing|theft|blood|hospital|obesity|lie|soccer|fire|pregnancy test|pregnancy|boyfriend girlfriend relationship|girlfriend|supermarket|murder|noise|listening to music|humiliation|multiple perspectives|nonlinear timeline|inspired by true events|based on true story|

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