Synopsis
Bright days ahead? Caroline has retired, at last. A new life lies before her: time to take care of her children, her husband, and, most of all, herself. However, she soon comes to realize that this new freedom is synonymous with boredom and idleness. Especially when she receives a membership to her neighborhood’s senior club as a birthday present… Reluctant at first, she nevertheless decides to take the plunge. Oddly enough, she meets great people there, starting with the young computer science teacher, who is far from insensitive to her charms. Caroline gradually takes control of her life again and lives a second youth: taking a new lover, living new experiences, breaking the rules, not doing what’s expected of her… Who said that retirement was the beginning of the end and not a new beginning?
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Cast
- Fanny ArdantCaroline
- Laurent LafitteJulien
- Patrick ChesnaisPhilippe
- Jean-François StéveninRoger
- Fanny CottençonChantal
- Catherine LachensSylviane
- Alain CauchiJacky
- Marie RivièreJocelyne
- Olivia CôteLydia - la prof de théâtre
- Émilie CaenL'hôtesse des Beaux Jours
Recommendations
- 83
Entertainment Weekly
The script is wispy, but the performances (including Patrick Chesnais as Caroline’s prideful, devastated husband) shine. - 70
Los Angeles Times
The well-observed script touches on a number of everyday issues about the aging process — whether you're pushing 40 or passing 60 — that add a tender and enlightening layer to this engaging, leisurely paced film. - 67
Portland Oregonian
Even if her turn in Bright Days Ahead feels overly familiar, especially after Deneuve's recent "On My Way," Ardant is still possessed of the same Gallic poise and presence, and generally a joy to watch. - 60
Village Voice
Ultimately, this is all about Caroline, and it's refreshing to see an optimistic story about an older woman who is funny, smart, and desirable, even if her happy life doesn't leave much room for conflict. - 60
Arizona Republic
Bright Days Ahead offers an interesting twist on the May-December romance. - 60
Empire
A romance not nearly as seductive as its lead actress. - 50
The New York Times
Struggling to get out from under the film’s too-cheery surface is a much more serious movie about grown-ups confronting the depredations of old age. - 40
The Dissolve
Bright Days Ahead means to be a casual, charming movie about a woman taking charge of her life, but its lightness gets unbearable; the film is so featherweight that it eventually blows away.
