CINEMA: Alain Resnais’ cycle

Muriel ou le temps d’un retour, by Alain Resnais

In the seacoast of Boulogne, Hélène sells antique furniture, living with her step-son, bernard... One day, she invites a former lover, Alphonse, to visit her. He turns up, with a much younger woman who pretends to be his niece but who is in fact his mistress. As Hélène tries to re-kindle past memories with Alphonse, Bernard is still haunted by his recent experiences of military service in Algeria...

Widely regarded as one of Alain Resnais’ greatest films, Muriel is perhaps the most perfect distillation of the themes of time, place and memory which dominate most of the director’s works.