When Fall Is Coming

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1:51

When Fall Is Coming

2025

1h 42m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

97%

Tomatometer

64 Reviews

75%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

Michelle is enjoying a peaceful retirement in a Burgundy village, close to her longtime friend Marie-Claude. When her Parisian daughter Valérie drops off her son Lucas to spend school vacation with his grandma, Michelle, stressed out by her daughter, serves her toxic mushrooms for lunch. Valérie quickly recovers, but forbids her mother from seeing her grandson anymore. Feeling lonely and guilty, Michelle falls into a depression... until Marie-Claude's son gets out of prison.

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Critics Consensus

Director François Ozon deftly walks a tonal tightrope with When Fall is Coming, a darkly funny thriller given genuine humanity by Hélène Vincent.

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Jake Wilson

Sydney Morning Herald

Jul 31

3.5/5

...the storytelling is never unclear unless it’s meant to be, the actors have the trick of inspiring sympathy but not total trust, and if you have a taste for cosy unease, Ozon knows the recipe better than most.

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Zachary Barnes

Wall Street Journal

Apr 4

That it is still worthwhile owes largely to the sympathetic, sinuous performance of Hélène Vincent, in the lead role of a grand-mère who may not be as simply sweet as she first appears.

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Monica Castillo

RogerEbert.com

Apr 4

3.5/4

François Ozon’s dramatic thriller “When Fall is Coming” is deceptively calm and restrained for all the mystery that arises.

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Erick Estrada

Cinegarage

Dec 21

It's a really compelling dramatic exercise that the film proposes to the viewer. [Full review in Spanish]

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Kenneth R. Morefield

1More Film Blog

Nov 1

3/4

Rarely does this writing out and out falsify some assumption or inference about a character, but it often leads to doubts and second-guessing.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Oct 21

3/4

By refusing to make definitive declarations as to the true natures of these characters, Ozon satisfyingly blurs the lines between sinners and saints.

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Lisa

May 24

Great life stories of the human population and family’s lives affected and the secrets and judgements of our world!

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Alain E

@AlainE Feb 12

It is not a "policier " (crime movie in French), so there is no attempt to explain the events that took place. A unifying analysis is not very easy. If Vincent killed Valerie, what was his motivation. In any event the movie avoids overt melodrama, but without constructing a solid story.

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Melissa Jordan W

@MelissaJW Dec 4

It is rare to find a film that engages and warms me the way When Fall is Coming did. Probably not for everyone, as the moral relativism can be a challenge for some, but I found it refreshing and touching, with the added bonus of seeing rustic gorgeous French countryside.

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Smith R.

@MssrCritique Nov 15

Couldn’t find the humor, dark or otherwise, in this one.

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Jung G

Nov 15

You will wonder... Did she? Did he? Did they?

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Christina F.

Nov 12

Well directed, believable yet mysterious characters. Edgy but not scary. Very French! (I was born and raised in France 🇫🇷)

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François Ozon

Director

Hélène Vincent

Michelle

Josiane Balasko

Marie-Claude

Ludivine Sagnier

Valérie

Pierre Lottin

Vincent

Garlan Erlos

Lucas

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When Fall Is Coming: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Michelle is enjoying a peaceful retirement in a Burgundy village, close to her longtime friend Marie-Claude. When her Parisian daughter Valérie drops off her son Lucas to spend school vacation with his grandma, Michelle, stressed out by her daughter, serves her toxic mushrooms for lunch. Valérie quickly recovers, but forbids her mother from seeing her grandson anymore. Feeling lonely and guilty, Michelle falls into a depression... until Marie-Claude's son gets out of prison.

Director: François Ozon
Producer: François Ozon
Screenwriter: François Ozon, Philippe Piazzo
Distributor: Music Box Films
Production Co: Mandarin & Compagnie
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 4, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 10, 2025
Box Office (Gross USA): $147.9K
Runtime: 1h 42m

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