“Dying is easy, comedy is hard”, an adage that many of us are familiar with, and which tends to be used to describe any work of art that tackles life’s greatest inevitability with even the most vaguely comedic approach. We often find that humour tends to be a very effective way of exploring death and the surrounding circumstances, especially since it can assist in undercutting the more sombre tone and instead replaces it with something more compelling and far less overwrought. François Ozon was inspired to follow this pattern when it came to tackling the themes at the heart of Everything Went Fine (French: Tout s’est bien passé), which serves to be his adaptation of the autobiographical novel by the late Emmanuèle Bernheim, who wrote candidly about the final months she spent with her father, who decided to end his life through assisted suicide after a major stroke left him feeble and massively diminished his quality of life. Following her attempts to help her beloved parent by doing her best to grant him this final wish, while also navigating the harrowing realization that the time they have together is now far more limited than she would expect, the film is a poignant and captivating exploration of their relationship, beautifully brought to screen by Ozon, whose extraordinary compassion intermingles with his inventiveness in terms of tone and style. A very challenging film, albeit one that has several qualities that set it apart from several similarly-themed films, Everything Went Fine is an exceptional achievement, a heartful and powerful testament to familial connections and the burden that comes when realizing that your loved ones are not immortal and that sometimes sacrificing your desires in favour of granting someone their dying request is far more important than anything else. One of Ozon’s harshest films, at least in terms of the subject matter, but one that dares to tackle some intimidating subject matter, there are layers of meaning that take some time to fully comprehend, but once we’ve reached the point where it becomes clear what the director was aiming to achieve, we can see the underlying beauty that exists in both the original text and this glorious, detailed adaptation that is simultaneously haunting and heartfelt. 

Over time, art has become more receptive to exploring supposedly taboo subjects, and there have been examples of works that run the gamut of emotions when it comes to exploring some formerly controversial material. Yet, death – in particular the kind brought on through assisted suicide – has remained a polarizing concept, and one that many artists have tried to explore, but very rarely find an audience, since the idea of willingly going through the process of medically induced death has not quite been accepted in most cultures, being restricted to only a few countries in which it has grown to be seen as a worthwhile alternative to help terminally ill patients relieve their suffering before it becomes too intense. Ozon had an idea of what he was exploring when he set out to adapt Bernheim’s novel, which is still a slightly divisive piece of literature, particularly for how it presents the matter of assisted suicide in a matter-of-fact, unfurnished manner. Few directors could be trusted with this material more than Ozon, whose versatility as a filmmaker has allowed him to adapt to many different genres over time, with the one constant quality we find in every one of his projects being the heartful, complex depiction of the human condition. A lesser filmmaker (or one that didn’t view this particular side of the story) would have turned Everything Went Fine into an overwrought melodrama that has the primary intention of preaching about the subject, rather than simply allowing it to exist as an objective depiction of what many people like the protagonist’s father have to endure throughout their lives. Ozon approaches the material with such extraordinary compassion, setting aside the more thorny approach he would have usually taken, and instead replacing it with a heartfelt and detailed discussion on the subject and the surrounding circumstances, including the many complications that arise in the process. The film addresses the theme of assisted suicide in a frank, forthright manner and doesn’t leave any room for ambiguity – the viewer is welcome to debate the morality and ethics of such a practice, but Ozon (much like Bernheim in her writing) does not give us enough berth to decide whether the right decision was made. The story is presented in an unfurnished and direct manner, and while we may disagree with the practice, the film exists to be an objective account of this story, rather than a didactic and overly dense series of philosophical conversations, which is ultimately the right approach.

However, it’s important to avoid fixating on the potentially controversial theme of assisted suicide, since despite being the main narrative thrust of the film, it is essentially only half of what makes Everything Went Fine so incredibly compelling. It is also where the majority of the humour is found since it would have been wildly inappropriate for Ozon to focus a comedy specifically around someone suffering from a life-altering stroke to the point where he seeks out ways to end his life. Arguably, the humour is a lot more subtle and nuanced and has to do less with the medical side of the narrative (which is kept mostly vague – we only witness the circumstances surrounding it), and more with the interpersonal relationships that exist between these characters, The original novel was a detailed, highly-personal account of a woman who was not simply dealing with the impending death of her father, but rather reflecting on their life together, and how it will soon be coming to an abrupt end. The focus is on creating a vivid, heartfelt portrait of a family going through an enormous challenge that threatens to tear them apart at the seams since there is something deeply unnerving about knowing that your loved one is on the verge of ending their life, and putting a date on death is always a challenging experience. This is where the humour makes a difference – it’s impossible to deny that this is a very heavy story, but the use of gentle comedy alleviates the burden and allows the film to be far more endearing. It may not be the comedy-of-errors it could have been with a more flippant director at the helm, but its very unique tone underlines the fact that Everything Went Fine is as much about death as it is about family and the impact someone’s impending demise, whether by their hand or through the gradual passing of time, can have on their loved ones. Ozon emphasizes the connections between these characters, developing the relationships, particularly between the protagonist and her father, as the primary means by which the film examines certain ideas. It’s profoundly moving, and the humour is essential since the director (much like the original author) shows that there is nothing inherently forbidden about finding the comedy in a dire situation, and it ultimately proves to be a charming and much more meaningful account in this more unconventional but not any less moving form.

Everything Went Fine is designed as a slightly theatrical chamber drama that focuses on the interpersonal relationships between people, which is another trait that we find persisting throughout Ozon’s work, becoming something that he has mostly mastered in his unique way. As a result, many of his collaborators have done some of their greatest work under him, since he draws out something very special from every one of his actors, presenting us with a very different side of them all, and giving them the space to explore these characters on their terms, developing and shaping them to be aligned with their vision, which makes a big difference when it comes time to telling these stories and hitting all the necessary emotional beats. The leads of these films are Sophie Marceau and André Dussollier, and despite being mainstays of the French film industry for decades, this was their first collaboration with Ozon, who seems to have cast them for their ability to balance the tonal shifts as well as the challenging material that they were presented with, which may have been intimidating to less-experienced actors. Neither of these are particularly glamorous parts, especially the role of the family’s patriarch, who goes from a celebrated beacon of his community and beloved bon vivant known across the country to a meek and feeble shell of his former self, which Dussollier portrays beautifully. The film is mainly a father-daughter drama, and both leads are exceptional, evoking a lot of emotion from a seemingly simple premise, and proving to add so much nuance to an already challenging story. They’re joined by a small but strong supporting cast – Géraldine Pailhas whereas the always brilliant Charlotte Rampling has a few scenes as the protagonists’ mother and wife, someone who perpetually carries the weight of the past on her mind, always trying to reconcile how differently their lives could have been had other choices been made. As a character-driven drama, Everything Went Fine is exceptional, and everyone is doing extremely strong work that shades in all the ambiguities and makes this such a profoundly moving film that provides a beautiful glimpse into the lives of this family.

Crafting a film around the trials and tribulations of a family forced into a position of helping their patriarch plan his assisted suicide is a difficult topic, and one that could have become heavy-handed and unbearably dense under the command of many other directors, even those who had the purest and most sincere of intentions. Fortunately, the story captured the interest of Ozon, who makes an immediate connection with this material – it may be a deeply personal account of the original author, and adapting it (especially after her death) may be seen as slightly inappropriate, but Ozon’s compassion removes all doubt and allows the story to flourish beautifully. There isn’t an iota of unnecessary manipulation throughout the film – the emotions are frank and direct, and while it does become quite heartbreaking, such as in the final scene between the protagonist and her father before he is taken away to have his wish fulfilled, it never comes across as inauthentic. There is an organic sense of sincerity and admiration present in this film, and the director is singularly uninterested in debating the political or philosophical aspects of assisted suicide and the issues that surround it, instead objectively presenting the facts in a forthright manner that allows the themes to speak for themselves. His focus is instead on presenting this heartfelt portrait of a family undergoing major changes, focusing on their efforts to remain together despite the challenges presented to them. Beautifully complex and wonderfully eccentric in a small but substantial way,  Everything Went Fine is a truly lovely, engaging film that manages to be surprisingly life-affirming, despite the nature of the storyline and the themes being explored throughout. Ozon is a master of his craft, and while it may not be the most exciting of his projects, both narratively and in terms of the tone, it tells an important story that provokes thought and reminds us of the incredible miracle that is life, something that is fragile but worth celebrating, even when it is coming to an end.