Céline
After the death of her father, 22-year-old Céline inherits most of his estate, but gives it to her stepmother, causing her greedy fiancé to leave her. Following several failed suicide attempts, Céline is hospitalized and comes to the attention of a nurse, Genevieve, who has struggled with depression. Under her personal care, Céline gradually recovers, and the two women grow close.
Critics Sentiment
Céline levitates and merges with the divine as crowds gather at the Vieux Moulin
Céline swallows sleeping pills and throws herself into the Vieux Moulin pond
The film swings from its lowest point during Céline's suicide attempt at the pond (5.5) to its peak during the levitation and divine-merger sequence (8.5), a rise of 3.0 points as the narrative transforms from bleak psychological crisis into full-blown spiritual transcendence.
Céline begins in grief and near-death before slowly ascending through Geneviève's grounded healing into an increasingly rapturous spiritual arc that divides audiences sharply. Viewers who embraced the film's unexpected mystical ambition and Delerue's score found it beautiful and unlike anything expected from contemporary French cinema, while detractors found the slow pacing and thin narrative momentum frustrating throughout. The overall arc is one of quiet, earned uplift, anchored by a luminous finale that rewards patient viewers.
Full cast
Isabelle Pasco
Celine
María Luisa García
Geneviève
Danièle Lebrun
Madame Giraud
Daniel Tarrare
Gérard
Damien Dutrait
Roland
Lucien Plazanet
Lucien
Sébastien Lenfant
Sébastien
François Eychart
Sébastien's father
Marie-Thérèse Eychard
Sébastien's mother
Pascale Simeon
Nurse
Pascal Eychart
Child with injured arm
Jacques Gelat
L'ami de l'accident
Elodie Plaquet
La petite fille au chat
François Rauscher
Olivier
Yves Jeannin
Monsieur Giraud
Crew
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