Both are good and alike and recall everyone memories when young.

As "Summer of 85" opens, the Cure's "In Between Days" plays over the opening credits, and we then get to know Alex, 16. He lives is a small seaside town in Normandy. Wnen he goes out sailing, he capsizes and almost drowns, but is rescued by David, 18. They strike up an immediate friendship and start hanging out together. Then Alex encounters Kate, an English girl who is an au-pair girl for the summer while trying to improve her French. At this point we are 10 min. Into the movie...

Couple of comments: this is the latest from writer-director Francois Ozon, whose previous work includes, among many others, the excellent ""Frantz", "In the House" and "Swimming Pool", just to name those. Hence my expectations were quite high for this. Alas, it was not to be. For that the movie is just too average. The two acting leads (Félix Lefebvre as Alexis, Benjamin Voisin as David) are tentative at best, and awkward at times. And the story has run its course, literally, after 70 min., and we must endure another 20 min. That are entirely superfluous. One of the most fun things about the movie, set in the mid-80s, is to watch all of the cars from that era (Citroen, Renault, etc.). Other funny side note: the film was originally titled "Summer of 84", but in order to secure the rights to the Cure's "In Between Days" (which was released in 1985),Robert Smith insisted that the film be set in 1985, and hence the movie's title was changed to "Summer of 85".

This movie was set to premiere at last year's Cannes film festival. Of course COVID-19 had other plans... The movie opened out of the blue at my local art-house theater this weekend. The Saturday early evening screening where I saw this at was not attended well: 3 people, including myself. I can't see this playing in US theaters much longer. For that the movie simply is too average. But of course you don't have to take my word for it, so I'd suggest you check this out, be it in the theater (while you still can),on VOD< or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

Félix Lefebvre (who reminded me, here, of a young Charlie Hunnam in "Queer as Folk" (1999)) is sixteen year old "Alex" who takes his friend's dinghy out for a sail and gets caught in a thunderstorm that capsizes his boat. Luckily for him, Benjamin Voisin ("David") is nearby and tows him ashore and into his mother's recuperative bathtub! The next six weeks are now depicted in a cleverly interwoven mix of current and recent storylines as we realise that a tragedy has occurred and that the two young men had something of a relationship during the intervening period. On the face of it - it's just a gay coming of age drama, but Levebvre has an intensity and innocence about him. His performance as the young man who falls so completely and utterly in love is heart-rending, sincere and stylishly captured by the photography - and must remind all of us of that first, inexplicable, "love" that we may well still recall to this day. To be fair, it is easy to see why he fell for the charismatic, exciting "David" - who offers him profound changes to his life, and to the rather linear options that most of us faced at 16 - job or school - but the story is more nuanced than that and though it is certainly not without some fairly substantial holes and inconsistencies, it sort of works. The Cure's "In Between Days" and an oddly effective "Sailing" from Rod Stewart provide a remarkably potent soundtrack that resonates not just the moment, but the sentiment too. Not, maybe, Ozon's finest work but I suspect we may see more roles from his young star in the future.