One Fine Morning

Stories of second chances, new beginnings, and one last shot at something – love, family, fame, legacy – are abundant in cinema. In many ways, One Fine Morning, the latest from writer-director Mia Hansen-Løve, fits this mould. Sandra Kinsler (Léa Seydoux) fills many roles in her modern Parisian life: working as a translator; parenting her spirited daughter Linn (Camille Leban Martins) alone, her partner having died five years ago in circumstances not fully explained; and caring for her elderly father Georg (Pascal Greggory), a former philosophy professor, who is losing neurological and physical functions through a degenerative disease. Her life sees two key changes early in the film: Georg’s ability to live alone ends, and former acquaintance and possible former flame Clément (Melvil Poupaud) re-enters her life.

One Fine Morning unfolds from this junction with an unforced rhythm and naturalism. The film’s effervescent true-to-life dialogue (especially between Sandra and Linn) and sun-dappled look are so lovingly, impeccably constructed that the life bursting from each frame is packed with possibilities, even in the most mundane interactions and activities. Hansen-Løve, however, does not let this romance (in all senses of the word) go unchallenged, especially when it comes to choices and crossroads Sandra – and the audience – expect to be definitive, revelatory, and impactful. As in life, these moments are poignantly underplayed; neither the viewers nor Sandra know the magnitude of each change until far later. Seydoux’s luminous presence holds the meandering plot together, inviting us into Sandra’s world and making no apologies for her petty annoyances or reluctant generosity.

In the Parisian way, Sandra and Clément become lovers almost immediately. As a formerly bereaved parent and a still-married man, the affair’s bumps are apparent but never forced. The choices and life ahead of each of them contrast with Georg’s decline, as he moves from facility to facility in the family’s search for appropriate care and dignity.

Sandra’s acerbic mother (Nicole Garcia) is more present in Georg’s life than his current partner Leïla (Fejria Deliba), who has an unspecified health condition which makes it impossible for her to care for him. This drawing, by necessity, of the divorced family back together in these last days (figuratively speaking – not even the doctors know how fast Georg’s condition will kill him) strikingly highlights the lie of second chances. Sandra, Clément, and Linn still have time to choose their future, but a gentle, sombre reminder of existing ties lends melancholy to what could be a bog-standard middle-class tale of adultery.

The title One Fine Morning is taken from Sandra’s exploration through her father’s diaries as she seeks to understand him, finding his own attempts to do the same within the pages. These notes and scribblings draw on his favourite writers – Kafka, Mann, Hegel – to make sense of his changing condition. Hansen-Løve lets these reflections land outside the linear time of the film, finding breathing space for Sandra to process her journey as the belief in a controlled, controllable life – and its myriad choices – becomes increasingly elusive. And yet, among this growing nihilism and acceptance, love remains the only thing that makes a difference.

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One Fine Morning is released 14 Apr by MUBI