Near Orouet

In early September, three young Parisians—Caroline (Caroline Cartier), her cousin Kareen (Françoise Guégan), and Joëlle (Danièle Croisy)—travel to the sparsely populated shorefront town of Orouët for a carefree holiday. At the house of Caroline’s mother, the trio soon take in Joëlle’s boss Gilbert (Bernard Ménez), and romantic complications inevitably ensue: ever the schlemiel, Gilbert suffers subtle humiliations at the women’s hands in order to remain close to Joëlle, his crush, while Joëlle develops feelings for Patrick (Patrick Verde), a handsome, sporty neighbor who in turn flirts with Kareen. Jacques Rozier constructs his love triangle (or, rather, square) without an ounce of melodrama, focusing as much on the vacation’s languorous atmosphere—and its giddy effect on the friends’ inside jokes and childish slapstick—as on the slow-burn plot. Perfectly capturing both the liberating promise and the melancholic effervescence of summer, NEAR OROUËT is a minor masterpiece of the post–New Wave era and a beautiful meditation on the fleeting nature of youth, love, and time.