''Spring Blossom'' (french: Seize printemps) is a 2020 French drama film directed by Suzanne Lindon. The film stars Lindon as Suzanne, a teenage girl who is disenchanted with her peer group, and develops a relationship with Raphaël (

Arnaud Valois Arnaud Valois (born 29 February 1984) is a French actor who was born in Lyon. He began his career in 2006. He played the protagonist Nathan, in the 2017 movie ''BPM (Beats per Minute) (120 battements par minute)''. Career Valois ceased studie ...

), an older actor she meets outside a theatre. The film was named as an Official Selection of the

2020 Cannes Film Festival The 73rd annual Cannes Film Festival was scheduled to take place from 12 to 23 May 2020. On 13 January 2020, Spike Lee was named as the president of the Jury. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France, festival management announced on 14 ...

, although it was not able to screen at Cannes due to the cancellation of the festival in light of the

COVID-19 pandemic in France The COVID-19 pandemic in France has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. The virus was confirmed to have reached France on 24 January 2020, when the first COVID-19 case in both Europe and France was identified in Bordeaux. Th ...

. It screened at the Angoulême Francophone Film Festival, and at the

2020 Toronto International Film Festival The 2020 Toronto International Film Festival, the 45th event in the Toronto International Film Festival series, was held from September 10 to 21, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto, the festival took place primarily on an online stream ...

. It was also screened at the

51st International Film Festival of India The 51st International Film Festival of India was held from 16 to 24 January 2021 in Goa. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the festival went hybrid, there was physical and virtual screening of 50 films out of 224 films across various categories. B ...

in the World panorama section. It received mixed to positive reviews from critics and audiences.

Cast

* Suzanne Lindon as Suzanne *

as Raphaël Frei * Frédéric Pierrot as Suzanne's father *Florence Viala as Suzanne's mother * Rebecca Marder as Marie *Arthur Giusi as Léonard *Pauline Rugo as Murielle * Dominique Besnehard as Gérard Beaumann

Production

The screenplay for ''Spring Blossom'' was written by Suzanne Lindon (who is also its director) at the age of 15. The director cast herself in the film at the age of 20.

Reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of based on critics, with an average rating of . The site's critical consensus reads, "An enchanting debut for writer-director-star Suzanne Lindon, ''Spring Blossom'' captures first love with fittingly delicate beauty." Katie Walsh of the '' Los Angeles Times'' wrote "Such a confident and self-assured debut would be remarkable for a filmmaker of any age, as ''Spring Blossom'' is a finely wrought, sensitively felt and artistically bold work". Jake Cole of ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' praised the director and her debut film for " aintinga concise and truthful portrait of her protagonist's feelings of estrangement", while Tim Robey of '' The Daily Telegraph'' called it "tender, amiable and sweetly played". Jordan Mintzer of '' The Hollywood Reporter'' called ''Spring Blossom'' as "Provocative and original, if a bit slight". According to Steve Rose of '' The Guardian'', " he filmis a fleeting affair in every sense". The international press was also positive in regard to the film's premise and release. Writing for '' The Indian Express'', a daily newspaper in India, Shubhra Gupta said "The connection between uzanne Lindon and Arnaud Valoisis tenuous, but tangible: you get the feeling that it may not last too long, as teenage passions are wont to, but it may leave a stamp on both. In spring, things blossom".

References

External links

* * {{Metacritic film 2020 drama films French drama films 2020 directorial debut films 2020 films 2020s French-language films 2020s French films