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Reviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
SEVENTH HEAVEN
The sexual bond between husband
and wife is at the core of Seventh Heaven. Mathilde (Kiberlain) is a pretty, young
Parisian mom suffering an
identity crisis. She passes through the city in a zombie-like
trance - stealing toys, fainting and ditching work. Her handsome
husband, Nico (Vincent), is a successful surgeon. However, the two can barely talk to each other.
And in bed, she remains in a stupor.
Through a chance encounter, a mysterious hypnotist/therapist finds and treats Mathilde,
and suddenly she’s a new woman. She rearranges furniture to follow the
guidelines of feng shui and rediscovers things about her own
father through hypnosis. By discovering herself
through alternative therapy, Mathilde becomes content, and the sex gets
better. But this change is too much for Nico, and he begins, in a compelling plot twist, to
unravel.
In the process, director Jacquot reveals the relativity of family relationships. As
Mathilde changes, her husband must change; as he changes,
Mathilde’s role as mom shifts. At one point, her adorable
young son is reading to her, while she sleeps instead of
the other way around. And what surfaces is a mutable family
dynamic, which must become flexible to allow for Mathilde’s
new found happiness.
Released in 1997, the themes in the film feel already dated -
hypnotherapy and feng shui don’t quite justify Mathilde’s
sudden transformation. However, through her subtle acting, Kiberlain is convincing.
With its rich cinematography, Seventh Heaven successfully and humorously
calls into question the role of husband, wife and child within
the modern family. Caitlin Shamberg, former programming associate for the Mill Valley Film Festival
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