Last Summer

Anne (Léa Drucker) is a renowned Parisian defense attorney specializing in cases of adolescent abuse and minor protection. She leads an enviable, meticulously structured life in an idyllic country estate on the heights of Paris with her successful businessman husband, Pierre (Olivier Rabourdin), and their two young adopted daughters. Her serene domestic existence appears impenetrable, defined by professional authority, high-bourgeois elegance, and quiet affection.

The tranquil order of her household is disrupted when Pierre's rebellious 17-year-old son from a previous marriage, Théo (Samuel Kircher), comes to live with them after being expelled from school. Sullen, volatile, yet deeply vulnerable, Théo clashes with his father while bringing an unpredictable energy into the home. Anne initially acts as a level-headed mediator between father and son, but a subtle, charged friction quickly develops between her and the young man.

As summer progresses and Pierre leaves on frequent corporate trips, the boundaries between stepmother and stepson begin to erode. What starts as a provocative game escalates into a secret, passionate affair that threatens to shatter Anne's career, marriage, and carefully cultivated reality. Without resorting to cheap sensationalism, the narrative explores the treacherous, slippery slope of desire, power, and self-preservation.

In Last Summer (L'Été dernier), director Catherine Breillat examines the hypocrisies of female desire, power dynamics, and the mechanics of the conscious lie. Rather than offering a didactic moral lesson or reducing the narrative to a simple story of victim and predator, Breillat approaches transgressive desire with a detached, clinical intimacy.

The film highlights the friction between society's demand for moral perfection and the dark, chaotic reality of human impulse. Anne's professional identity—protecting young victims—ironically mirrors her private transgressions, illustrating how easily individuals can compartmentalize their actions and rewrite truth to protect their privilege. Breillat asserts that moral certainty is a fragile construct, showing how adult respectability often relies on silencing uncomfortable truths to maintain the illusion of harmony.

The Willful Blindness Reading: Pierre knows Théo is telling the truth. His final command ("Tais-toi") is an act of self-preservation—choosing quiet living over the total destruction of his marriage and home.

Released in a cultural climate hyper-aware of consent, age gap relationships, and power dynamics, Last Summer sparked debate for refusing to deliver a simple moral condemnation of its female lead.

The film cements Breillat’s legacy alongside her controversial classics (Romance, Fat Girl) as one of France’s most uncompromising cinema artists exploring female sexual desire.

It premiered in Main Competition at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, earning 4 César Award nominations (including Best Director and Best Actress for Léa Drucker) and widespread praise from international critics for its emotional precision.

Praised Aspects: Léa Drucker’s captivating, layered performance; Samuel Kircher’s expressive debut; tight narrative tension; exquisite visual framing by Jeanne Lapoirie.

Main Points of Criticism: Viewers expecting traditional moral retribution criticized the lack of explicit legal consequences for Anne. Some found the premise uncomfortable or preferred the colder tragedy of the original Danish film.

Overall Verdict: A brilliant, provocative, and discomforting character study that lingers long after viewing.