Sous le sable (Under the Sand) (2000)

94% of critics liked it
(70 reviews)
79% of users liked it
(3,828 ratings)

Noted French filmmaker François Ozon directs this drama about personal loss and resilience. Marie (Charlotte Rampling) is deeply in love with her husband, Jean (Bruno Cremer). One day while vacationing at the seashore, Jean disappears into the ocean. A distraught Marie notifies the authorities, but… More Noted French filmmaker François Ozon directs this drama about personal loss and resilience. Marie (Charlotte Rampling) is deeply in love with her husband, Jean (Bruno Cremer). One day while vacationing at the seashore, Jean disappears into the ocean. A distraught Marie notifies the authorities, but sadly, they find no trace of her beloved husband. Later, back in Paris, Marie attends a dinner party hosted by her friend Amanda (Alexandra Stewart); over the course of dinner, it emerges that Marie and Jean had been married for 25 years. Marie speaks of Jean as if he were still alive, something that disturbs Amanda's fellow dinner guests, and after she is driven home by Vincent (Jacques Nolot), another guest, Marie sees Jean in her apartment and at breakfast the next morning. It quickly becomes apparent that Marie's imagination enables her to go along in life as if nothing happened to Jean, but as she slowly becomes involved with Vincent, she begins to cope with the fact that she is in fact living on her own. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 36 min.
Directed By: François Ozon
Written By: Marina de Van, Marcia Romano, Emmanuelle Bernheim, François Ozon
Genres: Art House & International, Drama

In Theaters: May 4, 2001 Wide
On DVD: Dec 11, 2001
Studio: Winstar Cinema

Critic Reviews

Peter Howell, Toronto Star
Under The Sand lifts the phantom-spouse syndrome to the level of art, yet another dimension for this popular form.
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail
... this picture demands (and rewards) close study ...
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News
It crawls under the skin by placing you firmly in the shoes of the mourner.
Eric Harrison, Houston Chronicle
It's hard even to describe the movie without making it sound trite. Rather, by showing behavior, the film gets at the emotional truth that underlies it.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Both of these Ozon films can do what few directors have mastered. They can make us feel exactly what the director intends, without overt or obvious cues.
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Quando o filme chega ao fim, podemos até não saber muito mais sobre o desaparecimento de Jean, mas certamente nos aprofundamos na complexa psiqué de sua esposa.
Tom Grealis, RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland)
A measured yet deeply enthralling character study of loss and loyalty.
Brent Simon, Entertainment Today
A stately and reticent portrait of arrived-at bereavement... and the capacity for self-delusion [anchored by] the beautiful and talented Rampling, enjoying her largest, most interesting role in some years.
Nathaniel Rogers, Film Experience
The film takes you slowly and confidently to the labyrinth of denial that often accompanies horrific loss.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Charlotte Rampling is delightfully sincere and believable in her subtle performance.
Michael W. Phillips, Jr., Goatdog's Movies
A beautiful and challenging film.

Read all 11 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

jay n

Complex drama of grief and its effects on one woman. Minimal dialogue and maximum emotional truth are on display. Charlotte Rampling is a marvel.
Drew S

Is there any working performer with eyes as expressive and versatile as Charlotte Rampling's?
Daniel P

François Ozon's films, even those that aren't entirely successful, are always worth seeing, and Sous le Sable is certainly no exception. This is one of his "deceptively simple" films, that, like Le Refuge, explores one or two… More
François Ozon's films, even those that aren't entirely successful, are always worth seeing, and Sous le Sable is certainly no exception. This is one of his "deceptively simple" films, that, like Le Refuge, explores one or two themes but in realistic, surprising and moving ways. Here, Charlotte Rampling offers a quietly impressive role as Marie, whose husband Jean goes for a swim in the sea whilst vacationing and is never seen again, apparently drowned. Marie refuses to accept that he is gone, even his physical presence, let alone his life, and thinks of him and refers to him in the present tense, her grief too awful, traumatic, impossible to 'indulge' in. Deeply complex, the film concentrates almost only on her denial and how she is able (initially) to make excuses for Jean's absence in her life, and at home when alone, imagine he is there (though 'imagine' is not strictly true - delusional is more appropriate but that word also has connotations of madness that may not apply). It's not easy viewing in any sense of the word, but Ozon is absolutely in control of all the elements and Rampling's performance, which seems perpetually on the edge of shattering, is nothing less than perfectly observed, but also restrained, understated, all in facial expressions (see also the work of Kristin Scott-Thomas and Lauren Ambrose). An extraordinary film.
Doctor S

Meet Cleopatra, the Queen of Denial, except here her name is Marie. Meticulous, sloooow-moving meditation on grief and coming to grips with sudden tragedy. Charlotte Rampling is quite excellent but her withdrawl into a fantasy existence turns the audience into clinical observers and… More
Meet Cleopatra, the Queen of Denial, except here her name is Marie. Meticulous, sloooow-moving meditation on grief and coming to grips with sudden tragedy. Charlotte Rampling is quite excellent but her withdrawl into a fantasy existence turns the audience into clinical observers and in the end we don't learn much. Well made but too deliberate for some tastes or an unrestrained recommendation.