When i saw the cover of this Géraldine's movie, i decided to keep it for the last because it seemed the most interesting : Lhermitte is a honorable actor and this meeting of snow, dogs and loneliness was intriguing… Now that i have watched it, i can say this is a terrific movie, full of compassionate feelings and optimism : sure the beginning is hard because it's about losing a child… But i can understand the father reaction : numbness, morbid hobby and the desire to start it all over again by himself… The movie is really good to focus on the small, little joys of life, the unexpected meetings and in that context, the dog walking is a great idea : Dogs are the best to meet strangers and this cold Canadian winter is wonderful to offer the ideal location for introspection, as i have experimented by walking in Stockholm. All this generous Canadian cast is welcomed as it's a good change from the usual well stuffed french one… Géraldine is excellent here in her first bad character as a rather poor sighted mother and wife… For all those who like zen, calm, insight and life philosophy, this movie is a must- see because it teaches you how it's more and more difficult in our material world to stay true to oneself and to say NO when needed ! In all cases, it's more intelligent and emotional about parents loss than the one with Jenny (Reservation Road) which is the usual American soup about revenge, violence: here the focus is about of hope, help and resilience

"La nouvelle vie de Paul Sneijder" tells the story of a man who lost his daughter due to a rare elevator accident. When his wife pressures him to sue the company in order to be able to afford a good college education for his sons, he begins to question his life and starts to break out.

This is more or less a feel good movie, even though it includes many bitter and sad moments. The characters are quite one-dimensional (I've never seen a purer example for a stone-cold wife) and the plot also doesn't offer too many surprises. Nevertheless, you somehow begin to emphasize with this poor man during the film. Therefore this movie won't be a gamechanger, rather a nice little production somewhere between a better tv-production and some sparkles of arthouse.

All in all you don't miss out on something if you don't see it but you also can't do much wrong by giving it a try. Maybe it makes you question your own choices and in that case it's already worth it.