Life & Nothing But

Atmospheric, solemn, personal story of France in the wake of WWI and the survivors — soldiers and civilians — who attempt to find, or at least identify, those lost in the war. It balances country and individual well, and poses interesting questions about how well we really know our loved ones, and what of that matters when they’re gone. Still, this is not the most successful Tavernier in my opinion; I don’t think he draws his characters as richly as his subject would allow him, and the romantic element feels tacked on (though its ultimate implications are heartbreaking).