Fin août, début septembre (1998)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Olivier Assayas

Writer:

Olivier Assayas (written by)

Release Date:

10 February 1999 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A story about the transition from late youth to early maturity, the film follows several friends and...

Plot Keywords:

Writing | Kinky | Train | Death

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Mathieu Amalric	...	Gabriel
Virginie Ledoyen	...	Anne
François Cluzet	...	Adrien
Jeanne Balibar	...	Jenny
Alex Descas	...	Jérémie
Arsinée Khanjian	...	Lucie
Mia Hansen-Løve	...	Véra
Nathalie Richard	...	Maryelle
Eric Elmosnino	...	Thomas
Olivier Cruveiller	...	Axel
Jean-Baptiste Malartre	...	Editeur
André Marcon	...	Hattou
Elisabeth Mazev	...	Visiteuse de l'appartement
Olivier Py	...	Visiteur de l'appartement
Jean-Baptiste Montagut	...	Joseph Costa
Olivier Torres	...	Marc Jobert (as Olivier Torrès)
Joana Preiss	...	Standardiste
Jean-François Gallotte	...	Producteur documentaire
Fejria Deliba	...	Amie de Lucie
Bernard Nissile	...	Frédéric
Beatrice De Roaldes	...	Couple à la campagne (as Béatrice de Roaldès)
Jean-Lou Taleghani	...	Couple à la campagne
Elizabeth Marre	...	Acheteuse de l'appartement
Thierry Angelvi	...	Acheteur de l'appartement
Damien Dodane	...	Ami d'Axel
Alexandra Yonnet	...	Assistante du bureau de production
Ozal Descas	...	Fille de Jérémie
Julien Vieville	...	Petit ami de Véra
Marion Hanania	...	Copine de Véra
Catherine Mouchet	...	Attachée parlementaire
Elli Medeiros

Directed by
Olivier Assayas

Writing credits
Olivier Assayas		(written by)

Produced by
Georges Benayoun	....	producer
Philippe Carcassonne	....	producer
Françoise Guglielmi	....	executive producer

Cinematography by
Denis Lenoir

Film Editing by
Luc Barnier

Casting by
Antoinette Boulat

Production Design by
François-Renaud Labarthe

Costume Design by
Françoise Clavel

Makeup Department
Thi Thanh Tu Nguyen	....	makeup artist (as Thi-Thanh-Tu Nguyen)

Production Management
Patrice Arrat	....	production manager
Eric Bassoff	....	post-production supervisor (as Éric Bassoff)
Julien Bouley	....	assistant unit manager
Gilles Martinerie	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Max-Olivier Ducout	....	carpenter
Olivier Français	....	trainee assistant director
Françoise Malaplate	....	weathering painter
Marie-Jeanne Pascal	....	first assistant director
Gilles Vincent	....	art department assistant

Art Department
Cécilia Blom	....	set designer
Phillipe Christeller	....	carpenter (as Philippe Christeller)
Patrick Delmas	....	carpenter
Max-Olivier Ducout	....	carpenter
Peter Hammond	....	construction coordinator
Christophe Herisson	....	property master
Christian Lionel	....	carpenter
Françoise Malaplate	....	weathering painter
Sébastien Meunier	....	second assistant set decorator
Yann Richard	....	first assistant set decorator
Gilles Vincent	....	art department assistant
Patrick Widdrington	....	construction coordinator

Sound Department
Pascal Chauvin	....	foley artist
Pascal Dedeye	....	foley artist
William Flageollet	....	sound mixer
Stéphanie Granel	....	sound editor
Olivier Le Vacon	....	boom operator
Marie Massiani	....	foley recordist
Bridget O'Driscoll	....	assistant sound editor
Marie-Christine Ruh	....	sound editor
François Waledisch	....	dialogue editor
François Waledisch	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Vincent Blasco	....	key grip
Stéphane Bourgoin	....	electrician
Sophie Charrière	....	first assistant camera
Nathalie Eno	....	still photographer
Pascal Ghristi	....	grip
Leo Gomez	....	chief electrician (as Léo Gomez)
Virgil Gomez	....	electrician
Marie-Claude Ista	....	second assistant camera
Lucas Leconte	....	assistant camera: second unit
Denis Lenoir	....	camera operator
Yorick Le Saux	....	director of photography: second unit

Casting Department
Olivier Torres	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Isabelle Blanc	....	assistant costume designer
Jessica Doyle	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Marie-Pierre Frappier	....	assistant editor
Marie Lecoeur	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Ariel Askénazi	....	financial director
Nathalie Clavier	....	production assistant
Sandra Cohen	....	financial director
Brigitte Faure	....	juridical director
Agnès Feuvre	....	script supervisor
Serge Klinger	....	production assistant
Laurence Milon	....	production assistant
Jean-Paul Musso	....	title transfer: 35 mm
Sébastien Quérité	....	production assistant
Sophie Resnais	....	production secretary
Lionel Rigothier	....	production assistant
Nora Salhi	....	administrator
Philippe Thomas	....	juridical director
Frédéric Vin	....	production assistant

Thanks
Enzo Gallo	....	thanks
Isabelle Janier	....	thanks
Stéphane Possot	....	thanks
Christiane Rorato	....	thanks
Pascal Thomas	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Dacia Films (presents)
• Cinéa (presents) (as Ciné A)
• Canal+ (participation)
• Centre National de la Cinématographie (CNC) (participation)
• La Sofica Sofinergie (participation)
• SofyGram (participation)

Distributors

• PolyGram Film Distribution (1998) (France) (theatrical)
• Universal Pictures France (UPF) (1999) (France) (DVD)
• Aventi (2007) (France) (DVD)
• Agora Films (1999) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Artificial Eye (1999) (UK) (theatrical)
• Christal Films / Lion Gates Films (1999) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Cinema Mondo (1999) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Films de l'Elysée, Les (1999) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Prokino Filmverleih (1999) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Vértigo Films (1999) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Zeitgeist Films (1999) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)

Other Companies

• ADAGP, Paris  painting: Dessin de Joseph Beuys
• Artistic Palace  titles
• Automobiles Peugeot  thanks
• Car Grip  grip and lighting equipment
• Coca Cola  thanks
• Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (R.A.T.P.)  thanks (as RATP)
• S.N.C.F.  thanks (as SNCF)
• Segafredo  thanks
• Tohu Bohu  post-production sound services
• Transpalux  post-production facilities

Also Known As:

Late August, Early September (USA)
Les regrets (France) (working title)
Das Ende der Unschuld (Germany) (TV title) [de]
Ende August, Anfang September (Germany) [de]
Finales de agosto, principios de septiembre (Spain) [es]
Kun kesä on ohi (Finland) [fi]
Mellan två höstar (Sweden) [sv]

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-12 | France:U | Singapore:M18 | Spain:13 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15

Company:

Dacia Films

Soundtrack:

Contre le sexisme

Yes, even this one

Can actors save an otherwise completely bad movie? The answer is of course "yes". Proof, if needed, is the possibly horrible "Fin août début septembre". The only reasons I went to see it, were the fact that the movie was directed by Assayas (who impressed me with "Irma Vep") and that it starred Virginie Ledoyen (up till now excellent in every movie she ever played in). Yes, she was very nice in "L'eau froide", a not so good movie by... Olivier Assayas. Oops! Yet, with Miss Ledoyen and "Irma Vep" in mind, I went to the theatre... and was quite disappointed. The story is so lame I can't even convince myself of giving you a summary. Then we have the director... Well, I can only think of two things that must have happened. Either Olivier Assayas was constantly absent and gave the camera to his five year old nephew, or he tried to make something resembling a Dogma 95 movie. We'll go for reason number one. The camera spins and spins when there is no reason to spin. When your actors sit on the ground, you don't have to make wild images. Unless of course the cameraman is so busy trying not to fall from the stairs at that moment. Maybe falling wouldn't have been that bad: we wouldn't have had the rest of the movie.

But this is going to startle you: I gave the movie a 6/10. Excuse me? A six? Well yes, a six... because the actors (mainly Virginie... again / of course) are so good that you try not to see what Assayas did to the movie. If you are somebody who can look at actors and enjoy their work, maybe you can have a look at this movie. If not, pretend it's poisoned with plutonium.

(P.S. I wonder if I would have given the movie 6/10 if Virginie Ledoyen hadn't been in it. I guess only a remake can tell me that. But in case Assayas accidently reads this: DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!)