Résumé : Almut and Tobias' lives are forever changed when an accidental encounter brings them together.
Critique : He is in the middle of a divorce, and she is separating from her partner who would like to start a family with her. In short, here are two people who have everything together, until this stupid accident which causes their fate in a hospital emergency department. Told in a basic way like this, this sentimental comedy could lead the viewer to believe that French screens are still flooded with somewhat silly products which will only stay in cinemas for a few weeks. Gold, Love in the present conceals in its narrative structure a whole miracle of sensitivity and gentleness, placing one face to face with the other, a young chef, as passionate as she is determined; and a handsome guy, incredibly kind. But illness quickly interferes in this romance, carrying the story into a whirlwind of sweetness and pretty feelings.
- Copyright Peter Mountain / Studiocanal GmbH
In fact, the strength of the feature film remains its narrative construction. The scenario chooses to mix temporalities, going back and forth between the supposed past and present of the two heroes until this end which we know in reality, from the first sequences, is haunted by loss. The story is built as a sort of succession of present moments, which also inspire the English title of the film, which are as many vignettes from the past as the unfolding of their love story. The acting, the dialogues and the way of filming favor a wise, measured spirit, preserved from any melodramatic attempt which would weigh down an already serious subject.
Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh play these two English heroes with great agility. The male character shines with his sensitivity, and his devotion to the well-being of his partner, to the detriment of himself. This masculine portrait does a lot of good at a time when the media could reduce men to vile selfish beings, devoured by their only sexual desires to which women would only have to submit. Almut is a free, fighting woman who chooses happiness without ever compromising herself, at the risk of losing the people she loves. They embody a modern, romantic couple, who recompose the traditional forms of lovers in the cinema.
- Copyright Peter Mountain / Studiocanal GmbH
Love in the present is therefore never cutesy. Tobias's determination to love his partner for who she is, quite simply, is magnificent in a context where the boundaries between masculine and feminine are gradually blurring. Moreover, Almut embodies a profession usually reserved for men, where Tobias makes a living from his charms for a candy company. John Crowley has fun mixing genres, periods, and the identity positions of each, in a story which as it approaches the end takes on more and more depth.
Special mention must be made for the soundtrack. The main song accompanies this fragile and powerful couple with great poetry. We travel with them to an England that likes to blur the lines. The story is exciting, touching, and constitutes a sincere invitation to spend a cloudy and humid afternoon in the comfort of a cinema.
