In a ruthless black and white (at times overexposed) Paris, Elise survives, devastated by the death of her partner Bertrand.
She does not cry, tears are not for her, not yet. She holds them back, speaks in a neutral tone, walks aimlessly, takes medicines to sleep.
During these dull days, in the Faubourg Saint-Germain where she lives, she meets a friend, sleeps with a man, meets her father in a square; everyone wants to help her but is powerless to do so: Elise, destroyed from within, is closed in on herself even if she talks about Bertrand's death without apparent emotion.
Will she sink into an even deeper depression? One hope remains: little Louis, her son, whom she is obliged to take care of and who sparkles with life.
Told with talent, "Fais de beaux rêves" (Sweet Dreams") is the dark chronicle of a young woman suddenly deprived of the man she loves, temporarily reduced to the state of a zombie, unconsciously concreting her psyche in order to absorb the shock of his sudden death.
The whole thing is expressed masterfully by the director-writer-actress Marilyne Canto, who manages to capture Elise's distress without falling into the trap of pathos .
To be noted in two important scenes, the excellent performance of Dinara Drukanova as the pregnant friend and Olivier Perrier as the heroine's father, who expresses to perfection his helpless desolation.
Let's add that Marilyne Canto extends the story in a further feature film ("Le Sens de l'humour"): (same situation, same character named Elise, who only wants sex from her lover (once again Antoine Chappey), affection being reserved for the deceased and her little boy (Théo, previously Louis). I personally prefer the more sober, less hysterical short film, less plagued by dull moments. But whether you like "Le Sens de l'humour" or not, you can thank Pyramide Vidéo who, in its DVD edition, has brought together these two variations on the same theme by the same writer-director-actress. Each of the two films sheds light on the other and this is very enriching.
