Le Refuge

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Director Francois Ozon is best known for his punchy films 5X2, Swimming Pool and Time To Leave, and although Le Refuge explores survivor's guilt, death, abortion and the human condition (wasn't it always?), he's left his boxing gloves at home this time.

Mousse (Carre) and Louis (Poupad) are well-to-do heroin addicts, holed up in Louis' parents' plush Parisian apartment. Before any information is given on the characters, both overdose on their latest batch; when Mousse awakens in the hospital, the doctor tells her that Louis is dead and that she is pregnant with his child. At the funeral, Louis' parents put the squeeze on Mousse, urging her to terminate the pregnancy. Fast forward a few months and Mousse, having kept the baby, has sought solitude from her scrappy life in the country and, judging by her habit of wearing sunglasses indoors, herself too. The quiet is disrupted when Louis' younger brother Paul (Choisy) comes to stay...

Le Refuge is a curious one. It's hard to get a grasp on the characters. Ozon, with co-writer Matthieu Hippeau, throw idiosyncrasies at Mousse, whom the story revolves around, but never really get under her skin. We know she misses Louis, but only because she douses her bed with his cologne at night - she never mentions him and demands that Paul stop asking probing questions. We know she still suffers the pang of addiction, not waiting to get home before swigging her prescribed methadone. A woman on the beach tells her she 'radiates happiness', while a man at a bar wants to tempt her back to his apartment but she doesn't feel joy or sexy. Despite this, we still aren't privy to what is going on in her mind or what she wants from life. Ditto Paul, who only seems to be present to drag some information from the heroine. His efforts for the most part are futile.

With the characters kept at arm's length, Ozon doesn't sparkle the story with exciting moments to keep interest high - Le Refuge is a slow-moving, sparse picture showcasing Ozon's typically restrained direction. 'Understated' is a word some may use; others may use 'boring'. Ozon, to his credit, has avoided the pregnancy and drug story clichés but he hasn't replaced them with much. Why this story had to be told in film is all that will remain come the closing credits.