By accident, ‘par accident’ (Camille Fontaine, 2015): France

Reviewed by Laurine Lambert. Viewed at the Metro 4 theatre, Santa Barbara Film Festival, 2017.

By accident (Par Accident) is a French drama. Hafsia Herzi (La graine et le mulet, César 2008) is a big actress in France. The movie is directed by a woman, Camille Fontaine. There are many woman directors in France. Their cinema is as much a woman’s as a man’s medium. I am not sure if it is the way how the French work, or just French woman directors, but it is a really good and beautiful way how you get drawn into the story. They really know how to tell a story in a different way. This is really good drama movie.

It all starts with Amra (Hafsia Herzi) driving in her car. When she gets a message on her phone and tries to pick it up, she suddenly hits someone with her car. Amra is an Algerian immigrant without working papers. It is very hard for her to keep her life going, because the man who she hit is in a coma. She is taking care of her child and still manages to work illegally. Then Angelique (Emilie Dequenne) appears and gives a false statement to the police that it was not Amra’s fault. They become best friends, and Amra is very thankful for her statement. Slowly Angelique is becoming more and more manipulative. She interferes between husband and wife, slowly the tension is building up. The acting in By accident is outstanding. Not only the lead characters but also Mounir Margoum who plays Amra’s husband. The location of this movie is of importance to the story. It is a little house in the woods, it sounds scary but it is actually a beautiful calm place which emphasizes the friction between the characters . France is really a beautiful film location, it just makes everything interesting to watch.

If you have the chance to see this movie, I say take the chance! It is a great example of the European film industry, and a french movie can only be très magnifique.