Happening is a French film from Audrey Diwan, and it’s a film that is basically impossible to talk about without bringing up the fact that despite being set in France in the early 60s with an air of “man, it’s good that things aren’t quite like this now” hovering over the whole thing, it is being released on exactly the moment when the U.S. Supreme Court is set to overturn Roe v Wade, which protected a woman’s right to choose. What’s old is new again, and sadly, this film is fat more relevant than the filmmakers probably intended for it to be.
Based on the autobiographical novel by Annie Ernaux, the film follows Annie (Anamaria Vartolomei), a young student who finds herself pregnant. And she has no intention of keeping it. She wants to focus on her studies, going to college, her writing, making something of herself, which would be difficult as a young single mother. Unfortunately, France wouldn’t legalize abortion until the mid-70s, resulting in Annie trying to find any means to terminate the pregnancy without getting caught, and potentially prosecuted and sent to jail. And she’s doing this while trying to balance her life and the judgment she receives from those who find out.
Diwan takes a very minimalist approach with this film. Music is incredibly sparse, only two scenes come to mind when it is used. The style is kept grounded, devoid of anything flashy or calling attention to itself. It is filmed not only in a 1.37 : 1 aspect ratio, the cinematography by Laurent Tangy keeps Annie centered for practically the whole film, having the camera always by her side or behind her, not unlike how it was used in films like Darren Aronofsky’s mother! or Son Of Saul. It makes the proceedings far more tense and claustrophobic. Watching it all unfold makes it hard to breathe.
The only major touch that the film adds is the use of title cards to indicate how many weeks into Annie’s pregnancy we are, adding a sort of ticking clock element. Will she pull this off before the belly becomes apparent to everyone around her? And if she gets it, will she be OK? And if she’s OK, will she get caught and end up in prison? Diwan allows you to soak in the emotions and the situation, and she does it with great care, while also keeping you on edge, feeling all the stress and pain that our lead is feeling.
Speaking of, Anamaria Vartolomei delivers a stellar performance, one that makes you feel like you’re being dragged along through the hell she’s experiencing. As if she wants you to be a witness to all the terrible things she goes through, and it works. Her eyes are especially well utilized, as she sometimes has to get a variety of emotions across without the freedom to simply express through words. And how she’s able to emotionally tap into some of the things her character goes through in the final act, it’s incredible to behold.
Happening would probably make a great (if incredibly depressing) double feature with Never Rarely Sometimes Always. Two films that begs the audience to consider why we allow such difficulty for women to have access to safe abortions, and why we can’t allow female sexual agency without resorting to slut-shaming. Granted, we know why, it’s all sexism and patriarchal values passed down by society at large from generation to generation, but it’s still worth hammering it in given…you know…everything going on. Diwan has crafted a sobering film that works perfectly in sync with what Vartolomei is capable of as a performer. While the overall approach is perhaps a bit too minimalist for my personal taste, I can’t deny the effectiveness of the film overall, especially in the final act. I don’t necessarily see much new that the film is bringing, but as long as the world is the way it is, films like this, the aforementioned Never Rarely Sometimes Always, as well as works like Vera Drake, Unpregnant, Plan B, and 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days will keep serving as a reminder of the experiences that women have faced and will continue to face if things don’t change. Hopefully, we can reach a point where we can revisit these films one day, and think, “well, at least it’s not like that anymore.”
Happening is now out in select theaters.