Caprice 2015

Clément Dussaut, a primary school teacher whose marriage has ended, lives a quiet, solitary life and often confides his worries to the school’s headmaster, Thomas. In the evenings, he loses himself in the theatre, especially drawn to performances featuring Alicia Bardery. Her regal presence and extraordinary talent can move him to tears, a vulnerability that does not escape the notice of the next-seat observer, Caprice — a cheerful would-be actress who also works delivering pizzas.

When Thomas seeks a sympathetic teacher to tutor a youngster, he offers the job to Clément, and the assignment takes him to the elegant house where Alicia lives alone. The pupil is Alicia’s nephew, and as Clément settles into the rhythm of his new role, Alicia begins to appreciate his gentle charm and his natural rapport with children. Meanwhile, Clément finds himself already falling for the performer who captivates him on stage, even as he tries to keep his feelings in check. Before long, the romance of circumstance pushes Clément to move in with Alicia.

One evening, out for drinks with the solitary Thomas, Clément and Thomas are approached by two girls who turn out to be Caprice and her flatmate. A complicated night unfolds: Clément slips away from Caprice’s bed at dawn to vanish back into Alicia’s household, a moment witnessed by a servant who silently leaves, alarming Alicia when she learns what happened. Clément confesses everything and finds himself banished to the spare room. Later, out with theater friends, Alicia spots Thomas and, when the bars close, drags him into the theatre to raid the manager’s drinks cupboard. The pair hide their nocturnal indiscretion from Clément, preserving the delicate balance of their entangled lives.

Caprice refuses to accept that Clément can simply shut her out after a single tender night. She keeps finding reasons to reach out to him, even as Alicia travels on a lengthy tour. In a cruel turn, Clément breaks a leg in an accident, and Caprice remains by his side, though he resists the idea of being unfaithful again. He makes it clear he will not see her anymore, prompting Caprice to take an overdose. When Clément visits the hospital, he discovers that Caprice has a male friend who will look after her, adding another layer of complication to the trio’s fragile dynamics.

Back in Alicia’s orbit, she picks up a play that Clément had begun and that Caprice helped to refine, and their collaboration proves successful. The two lead figures—the celebrated actress and the aspiring playwright—seem to be living a luminous life, even as the tension surrounding Caprice lingers unseen. Meanwhile, Thomas’s wife reappears in his life, offering a temporary reprieve from the past. Yet the story leaves Caprice’s fate unresolved, leaving a question hanging in the theatre’s dim lights: what will become of the young woman who sparked so much movement in their entwined world?