FRançois Ozon brings great low-key confidence and artistry to this very moving film about euthanasia and assisted death. There is a strong sense of nonsense here, which is encapsulated by the one-time gesture of the title itself, left to decide what “smooth” it is in the end. The last shot of a dead person is an extremely difficult moment, unforgettable because of the lack of emotional influence.
The French veteran role actor André Dussollier (André Dussollier) plays André, a wealthy and well-connected retired industrialist (Later in the film, he will ask his daughter if he remembers to bring his Legion Medal of Honor ). In his eighties, Andre suffered a stroke. The energetic, handsome but articulate man we saw in the memory turned into a sad state in the hospital: his face and right eye drooped. His daughter Emmanuelle or Manue often visits him, played by Sophie Marceau (based on the author of the original autobiographical novel Emmanuelle Bernheim). She was obviously his favorite, even though she painfully remembered how cruel he was to her when she was a girl. Compared to his other daughter Pascal (Geraldine Pihas) and his ex-wife (Charlotte Lamplin), he is obviously closer to Manu, who is not due to his health. Jia is completely unmoved by the plight of his ex-husband.
As for Manue, she had fantasized about killing her annoying old father when she was a girl. So ironically, he made his final, arbitrary request to her: she must organize his euthanasia. This means that she must liaise with relevant Swiss organizations and establish semi-secret arrangements with lawyers to prevent them from being sent to prison.
As the weeks and months passed, Andre seemed to be getting better and better and more interested in life, and Manu hoped that he could completely forget the death-assisting business. However, this movie shows us that Andre’s morale is improving because he believes that death is imminent. But for Manue, there may not be any release-and by unwittingly fulfilling the terrible wish of her childhood, his cruelty now has new wisdom. This situation exposes us to André’s angry and injured former partner Gerard (Gregory Gadebois) and the down-to-earth Swiss woman who has to perform this process, played by Hannah Sgula .
To Andre’s frustration, the whole thing cost 10,000 Euros. “What about the poor?” He asked, and Manue replied grimly: “They are waiting to die.” Is this whole last scene in the last scene of Andrei’s life just another example of his wealthy power and arrogance. After all, this movie shows us that he did not endure unbearable pain and his quality of life did not deteriorate catastrophically. He has had enough; and has no intention of discussing, debating, or emotionally compelling us to agree.
And on its own, this movie has exactly the same attitude. Another type of drama puts issue-led disputes at the center of things. Not this movie. It was the turning point of the family drama, Du Solier and Marceau’s performance quietly outstanding.
