Eric Rohmer-Le Rayon vert (1986)

Delphine's traveling companion cancels two weeks before her holiday, so Delphine, a Parisian secretary, is at loose ends. She doesn't want to travel by herself, but has no boyfriend and seems unable to meet new people. A friend takes her to Cherbourg; after a few days there, the weepy and self-pitying Delphine goes back to Paris. She tries the Alps, but returns the same day. Next, it's the beach: once there, she chats with an outgoing Swede, a party girl, and a friendship seems to bud; then, suddenly, Delphine bolts, heading back to Paris. As she waits at the Biarritz train station, a young man catches her eye; perhaps a sunset and the sun's green ray await. (Arrow Films)




"Summer" is a character study of a single woman's voyage through urban loneliness, and in true Rohmer tradition, the action is dialogue driven. Many of Rohmer's films include some reference to the Parisian annual holiday, but in this film, the plot never strays from the idea of the annual exodus from Paris. (amazon.com)




Herein lies Delphine's dilemma–she doesn't want to be alone, but she doesn't exactly glow when she's around other people. When surrounded by others who attempt to make Delphine feel comfortable, her behaviour alienates them and ultimately isolates her. She's idealistic, and that makes her interesting, and she clearly doesn't fit in with the more social groups she constantly mingles with. (amazon.com)




Gloomy young Parisian Delphine (Marie Rivière) faces her summer alone when her best friend cancels their travel plans to stay with her new boyfriend. (Amazon.com - Editorial Reviews –Sean Axmaker)




Determined to have her vacation, she tries a number of alternatives but feels left out at a family retreat, runs into a former lover at a ski resort, and becomes completely cowed by her unlikely companion on the French shore, an uninhibited Swedish vacationer who sunbathes nude and picks up men for one night stands–-a far cry from the insecure Delphine. (Amazon.com - Editorial Reviews –Sean Axmaker)




Willowy Rivière plays Delphine with a combination of romantic idealism, headstrong determination, and uncompromising (often debilitating) demands, an impossible standard that leaves her lonely and wanting until she meets a handsome young man at the train station on her way back to Paris. (Amazon.com - Editorial Reviews –Sean Axmaker)





The two become charmed by one another and, giddy with anticipation, Delphine insists they watch the setting sun to see the legendary green ray (the French title of the film is "Le Rayon Vert") in an ephemeral conclusion both magical and tenderly human. (Amazon.com - Editorial Reviews –Sean Axmaker)




Rohmer changed his shooting style completely for the fifth film in his "Comedies and Proverbs" series, creating the characters in collaboration with the actors and shooting with only a script outline to create a largely improvised portrait of Delphine, but the easy rhythms, the gentle naturalism, and Rohmer's genuine affection for his characters, foibles and all, continue in his tradition of smart, sensitive, and delightfully witty romantic comedies. (Amazon.com - Editorial Reviews –Sean Axmaker)