User Reviews

A pleasant house waiting to be fully redecorated somewhere in the Burgundy countryside and its beautiful garden. Four people living in harmony : the father (André, a sculptor and occasional hairdresser), the mother (Paula, a translator), a teenage girl (Violette, the couple's adopted daughter) and a younger boy (Pierre, also an adopted child but of African origin)... A few impressionistic touches are enough for director Nicolas Birkenstock to suggest the impression of peaceful happiness in which they live. And then - bang ! - this fine balance gets shattered all of a sudden : Paula leaves home overnight, for no apparent reason, without explanation of any kind. André, at a loss first, feels more and more devastated as he realizes his wife may have gone forever. At the same time, he tries, in his own - clumsy and somewhat aggressive - way, to protect his kids by hiding the truth. Less and less successfully so as time goes by... A traumatic situation for sure, which could give rise to a psychodrama overflowing with cries, tears and gesticulations. But Nicolas Birkenstock is no Bergman or Xavier Dolan, even less a clone of Zulawski. So don't expect any hysteria or melodramatic scenes : desperation IS there but it runs deep, concealed behind the unsaid, with only a few violent breakthroughs. In fact, the director prefers capturing the characters' distress through the intimate style he used to evoke their initial contentment, which by contrast exacerbates it. And he has a special talent for that. In " La pièce manquante ", Birkenstock's first feature (following four excellent shorts), penetrating sharpness and sense of modesty mix for the best. As it is true that by avoiding emotional blackmail the author only grasps the vertigo that seizes the characters better. Philippe Torreton gives a dedicated performance as André the father. On par with him is young Armande Boulanger, intense in the role of his daughter. The sunshiny cinematography by Pascale Marin is fine too, marking a striking contrast between the glorious sunny outside atmosphere and the inner winter of feelings the characters have sunk into. Don't miss this touching movie. It was overlooked at the time of its release but can be rediscovered at any time whether on a computer or TV screen. It deserves it.