"All of a Sudden" - continuing to live in your field of vision

"All of a Sudden" Synopsis

Marie-Lou Fontaine, director of the "Garden of Liberty," a nursing home in the suburbs of Paris, strives to provide dignified care for her residents, but is plagued by staff shortages and a lack of understanding from her colleagues. Amidst this, Marie-Lou meets a Japanese director named Mari Morisaki. Mari, battling cancer herself, directs a one-woman show featuring actor Goro Kiyomiya, who spends his days with his grandson, Tomoki, who has autism spectrum disorder. Marie-Lou finds courage in Mari's theatrical performance. Led by the coincidence of sharing the same name, the two begin to interact. However, one day, Mari All of a Sudden. As Mari's illness progresses, their relationship deepens dramatically, and they begin to connect on a profound level…

Index

• Return the honor
• The way your voice carries, who are you?
• A film about building trees together

Return the honor

"The self and others we encounter do not possess a complete self." (" All of a Sudden ," by Maiko Miyano and Maho Isono)

A film that makes you pray that this night will last forever, while waiting for the dawn to arrive. Marie-Lou (Virginie Effra) and Mari (Tao Okamoto). Two women, one French and one Japanese, with very similar names, meet by chance and walk through the night streets of Paris. They walk down the corridors of a dimly lit building. The time limit until dawn is probably approaching. Until the coffee is ready. Until the instant noodles are ready. Their conversation continues. Time is being stretched out. As if to extend the time limit for Mari, who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Only half a day has passed since the conversation Marie-Lou and Mari had during the Q&A session at the theater. The light of the Bateaux Mouches (tourist boats) sailing down the Seine River at night. The world guided by the fading light of the night brings the two closer together. Intimacy is born. They are surprised at how slowly time is passing. They marvel at the richness of the time they have spent together. "The self and the other that you meet do not possess a complete self." Ryusuke Hamaguchi's new film, "All of a Sudden" (26), explores the spirit of these words found in the original work. Marie-Lou and Mari become mirrors reflecting each other. This film celebrates chance encounters. It celebrates the process of discovery.

Reading the original work, a collection of correspondence between Maiko Miyano and Maho Isono, one is struck by the fact that this story, which began with illness, strangely comes across as an extremely sharp work that touches upon all aspects of "making things." This is likely because the two authors earnestly explore how the world is perceived. It is an exploration of the world through the "technique" of words, written by a philosopher and an anthropologist. Furthermore, the words "chance" and "probability," which frequently appear in the original work, are themes that Ryusuke Hamaguchi has explored, and moreover, themes explored in the films of Eric Rohmer, whom he respects. Great art presents a different way of seeing the world, thereby posing questions to our present.

"All of a Sudden" © 2026 Cinéfrance Studios – Arte France Cinéma – Office Shirous – Bitters End – Heimatfilm – Tarantula – Gapbusters – Same Player – Soudain JPN Partners

This film calls getting into someone's line of sight a "skill." At the beginning of the film, Marie-Lou asks caregivers to get into the line of sight of dementia patients. The film depicts how to enter the rooms of hospitalized patients. The dynamics of intrusion and resistance. The nursing home where Marie-Lou is in charge treats the dignity of each dementia patient with great care. Marie-Lou is pursuing an ideal. She spends a great deal of time and effort on the process. Naturally, this leads to resistance due to the strain on the workforce (Marie Bunel, known for her roles in Claude Chabrol's films, brilliantly plays Sophie, the nurse who rebels against Marie-Lou).

Around the patients' beds are photographs of them when they were healthy. These still images of memories connect not only the patients themselves, but also everyone involved with them to the present. In this facility, not only the patients' photos and personal belongings, but also those of the caregivers and nurses are treated with care. It feels like a "return of dignity" to everyone in the community, and a "return of honor" for you to be yourself. Being a dementia patient is not everything you are, and being a terminal cancer patient is not everything you are. Being a caregiver or nurse is not everything you are. So, who are you?

The way your voice carries, who are you?