Michael Haneke's "Happy End" Gives An Unhappy First Glance
Wednesday, May 3, 2017 at 11:00PM With just about two weeks to go before its seaside premiere at the 70th annual Cannes Film Festival, the first image for Michael Haneke’s Happy End – his latest cold dose of cruel reality – has landed as hard as the realization that one day we will all die, and most likely alone. Of course, Haneke returns to Cannes this year a reigning champ, double-fisting Palmes d’Or after his last films to grace the Competition – The White Ribbon and Amour – emerged victorious. The question on many minds going into this year’s festival is whether he’ll win the top prize for a third time and break the all-time record he holds alongside fellow international auteurs Alf Sjöberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Bille August, Emir Kusturica, Shohei Imamura, the Dardennes brothers, and last year’s surprise winner Ken Loach.
Happy End reunites Haneke with two performers who have arguably given career-best performances under his clinician’s gaze: Isabelle Huppert, The Piano Teacher herself, and Amour’s Jean-Louis Trintignant; familiar faces Toby Jones and Mathieu Kassovitz round out the cast alongside fellow first-timers Franz Rogowski and Fantine Harduin. While little is known of the plot’s particulars, we do know that Happy End focuses on a French bourgeois family living comfortably in the port town of Calais as the European refugee crisis washes ashore in their midst, considerably less comfortably. The image above shows our main cast dining al fresco around a white-on-white-on-white table in the fashionably casual spring wear you’d expect from the seaside privileged, a breeze surely blowing somewhere in the air. Meanwhile, you can tell by their gazes of curious dispassion that you’re unmistakably inside a Michael Haneke film. Of all of his frown-triggering films to debut at Cannes in the main Competition – Funny Games (’97), Code Unknown, The Piano Teacher, Caché, The White Ribbon, and Amour – which sends your soul spiraling the deepest and darkest, and why?
Reader Comments (17)
I think The White Ribbon is the one that's affected me the most, and I've thought about it a lot recently with all the horrific current events happening in the US and abroad now. I deeply admire all of his films, although I'm a bit cold on Funny Games and its unnecessary English-language remake.
I'm still shocked at the reception Amour received from Oscars. Never in a million years did I think a Haneke film would receive Picture, Directing, and Actress nominations, especially one which dealt so unflinchingly with loss and death.
But what I'm most excited about is Isabelle Huppert, of course. I hope she blows it out of the park.
Michael Haneke puts my ass in the seat!!!!!!
I'm a big fan of Toby Jones. Talk about an underrated actor.
The white ribbon.
Because is the true that no one want to see. We hear it, they told us about it, but no one want to see that the Nazism is trying to reborn in our society, with more power than in the past, right now in our present times.
How crazy is it that Bille August, of all people, has two Palmes. Ridiculous, right?
Anyway, I cannot wait for this film. Probably my most anticipated of the year. And as for his previous ones, as difficult as it is for me to choose between so many greats, I think The White Ribbon barely edges everything else out for me. But he's one of the best filmmakers of all time. So hard to pick just one.
I think Amour is his best film, personally, but I do have a huge amount of love for The Piano Teacher. A hugely formative film for me (as scary as that sounds) but mainly thanks to the genius Huppert who delivers easily one of my top ten favourite performances of all time. A stunning, flawless piece of acting. So of course, can't wait to see what her and the maestro get up to.
Speaking of Huppert, did you see Barry Jenkins is seriously considering a Huppert collar re: Vulture magazine. Would be a dream no? Get an actor like Isaach De Bankole with her in a film by Jenkins. Kidman too, as it's clear Jenkins is a fan. That's what dreams are made of.
I'll probably never watch again Funny Games.
He's the best living director.
Haneke's body of work is immaculate. He's a master in the truest sense of the word. His filmography is always interesting and fascinating to talk about. My favorite of his is The White Ribbon but ask me tomorrow and it might be Amour or Cache.
I really thought Amour was so incredible. Looking forward to any Haneke from now on. Although I only saw Amour once, I'm scared to do another watch since I liked it so much. Piano Teacher and Code Unknown were very good too - still need to catch White Ribbon!
Toby Jones will be speaking French? Colour me intrigued...
My favourite Haneke is probably a tie between The Piano Teacher and Hidden
Let's be honest here: Haneke is simply the best working director right now Funny Games/Piano Teacher/Amour just mention those, are flawless films! And I said it (many times sorry) before & I'll say it again: Isabelle Huppert is one of the best EVAR!!
I like Haneke, but based on that plot description this sounds like Haneke in a familiar and particularly condescending and exploitative mode, with a "topical" global crisis fodder for another one of his self-important bourgeois portraits.
I thought the accusatory voyeurism in Blue Velvet was as difficult as it could possibly get before watching Caché; the final scene alone was worth the price of admission.
Amour. My mother has dementia and it is terrible seeing her go little by little. My dad is her primary caregiver and I sometimes wonder what would happen when things take a turn for the worse (my dad is almost 81 years old).
That final death in "Funny Games" is one of the most horrifying in film. Ugh!
The Piano Teacher is so tragic and compassionate. Isabelle Huppert is wonderful in it, of course, but everyone and everything works beautifully in that film.
Can we give the Oscar to Madame Huppert now?