Hamaguchi Probes French Health Care in a Long, Humane Cannes Drama

Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s All of a Sudden (Soudain), his first French-language feature, debuts at Cannes as the fest’s longest title this year. The drama follows a French nursing-home director and a visiting Japanese theatre director, weaving in debates about France’s health-care system, capitalism’s impact, and the Humane care approach called Humanitude. With strong performances, the film is praised for its humane intentions, but its 3+ hour length and lecture-like stretches threaten to dilute the drama.