English summary

Will it Snow at Christmas?, a classic of French cinema, is the film Movie W has chosen to screen as its Christmas film. This wonderful, moving film, which is set in the wintery French countryside, has been fully digitally restored and reissued by EYE Film Museum. It is the feature film debut of director Sandrine Veysset and it presents farming life without any frills.

The stunning beauty of the landscape contrast sharply with the brutally hard life of the main character, the mother of seven children. Out of necessity, she works on the farm owned by her tyrannical husband, who maintains a second family elsewhere. The farm provides too little to feed all the mouths. Will she manage to carry on now that Christmas is approaching?

A particularly appealing and strong element in the film is the way the children act so naturally. Veysset spent months getting them used to the camera. The film has deservedly won awards, including the César for the best debut film and the Fipresci Award at Viennale, Vienna’s international film festival.