Céline Roustan
June 21st marks the beginning of Summer, a whole new season, with all its attendant hopes and promises of fun: Summer camp, Summer flings, hot girl Summer, the “Summer of Love”. Winter blues? Understandable. But how can someone be down on the Summer solstice? Well, Fauve is in the midst of “The worst day ever to be having the worst fucking day ever” and in Solstice d’un cœur brisé (A Broken-Hearted Solstice), writer/director Fanny Lefort crafts a sharp and witty comedy about the alienating sensation of being miserable in the midst of joy all around you.
For Lefort, it was the overly enthusiastic tone of a radio host that sparked the idea for the short. A chipper voice, too eagerly pronouncing that it was “the longest day of the year” triggered a thought: “Imagine if you’re having a shitty day”, paired later with an image of a “desperate girl walking on a street in a bear costume with many happy people around her”. Perhaps in Los Angeles, the changing of the seasons isn’t anything to get worked up over, but in Quebec, just like in any place where winters are rough, Summers take on momentous importance. Feeling down really makes you feel out of place.
The Summer solstice is a clever pick for the scenario, not only because of the Summer frivolity that surrounds our lead, but the idea of the “longest day”. Fauve wants to throw in the towel and get through to tomorrow but the day will just not end. While this basic joke could easily tire over a 12min short, Lefort works to emphasize the themes of how out of place she feels via other elements. Her mascot outfit in the Summer heat and the metaphor of what air-conditioning represents, subtly build the emotional weight of the film. The film uses a lot of contrasting ideas to isolate Fauve, alone as she is, in that giant costume surrounded by happy people.
Fauve, in a giant bear costume on a sweaty day, perfectly depicts the isolation of her mental state and the absurdity of her circumstance.
The plot is propelled via exposition and is quite compelling, I am usually the first in line to criticize the use of voice-over narration, but here it is humorous, and effectively sets the tone of the film. Via shot selection we are instantly transported to a June 21st, with a preponderance of observational shots, documentary-style, giving a realistic look to something that we usually romanticize. These visuals perfectly pair with Fauve’s acidic state of mind as represented by her dialogue. Lefort masterfully straddles the line between sad-sack drama and comedic sadness which proves effective in generating audience empathy for Fauve, while also not finding the film too dour. For a film about depression and alienation, Solstice d’un cœur brisé proves quite light-hearted and entertaining.
Indeed, despite Fauve’s out-of-season and, hopefully, temporary funk, the film is undeniably a comedy. The editing is sharp and keeps the story moving along at a very engaging pace, with cuts that emphasize how funny (not the haha kind, but still) the situation is. Élodie Grenier brings effective energy to her character in all the situations she finds herself in as the absurdity of the day ramps up and keeps getting worse in unexpected ways. She truly shines in the break-up scene (it’s not a spoiler it’s in the title). The back and forth between her character and her now-ex is phenomenally entertaining—she really nails the right delivery of Lefort’s words. Later, when Fauve does not speak as much, Grenier’s performance carries the emotional baggage of her character without over-dramatizing the situation.
A Broken-Hearted Solstice was initially developed as a web series. The pilot was shot, but with the ups and downs of filmmaking, Lefort gave her project a second life by adapting it as a short film. This allowed the crew to approach the new project with the experience of the pilot, which probably contributed to it successfully bringing to the screen the nuances and relatability of this dark comedy. Impacted by the pandemic’s effect on festivals last year, the film still managed to play some choice spots, including Fantasia and New Zealand’s Show Me Shorts and is made available today via its distributor, SPIRA.