The family members in the film, from grandparents to grandsons, call each other with their first names and give the impression that they each have strong self-identities. Especially two siblings, the eldest daughter Alice who is an actress and her brother Louis who is a writer, haven’t talked to each other for twenty years. When their parents die, however, the wall between them seems to crack. The characters’ emotions are strong, yet the film stands at a distance with ambiguity: it approaches the story at one moment and halts still the next moment. Feelings of anger, sadness, and hatred gradually fade away like the letters written on a beach. To hold them inside and suffer leads the way to death. To be honest with desire and stand where we truly belong leads the way to life, the film says. Director Arnaud Desplechin has good sense of music and chose Al Stewart’s music for the film’s short climax. It makes the moment of reconciliation even more miraculous and fascinating. (LEE Yong Cheol)