Mélanie Laurent has more than proven her skill set as an actor at this point in her career; while I've not yet seen everything she's made, with only a handful of pictures behind the camera she has also shown her strong capabilities as a director. Weirdly, while it falls in the middle of her oeuvre to date in the latter capacity, I'm sad to say I don't find 'Plonger' entirely convincing. I don't think this is altogether bad by any means, yet for as heavily as the film emphasizes concrete moods and big ideas, it's notably more scattered and weak when it comes to details of each scene or the narrative at large. This is enjoyable, but certainly lesser among Laurent's works, almost as if in the moment she was struggling with broad difficulties just as character Paz is.
The portrait of the artist as depressed and uncontent, suffering from a ponderous malaise and dissatisfaction with her personal and professional life, is ripe for storytelling. It's clear as day here, and firm foundation for performances of Gilles Lellouche and especially María Valverde; César's troubles in Paz's absence (figurative or literal) are only a short step behind. The specifics are much more thorny. I don't know how much of it is the source material, and how much the adapted screenplay; Laurent's direction may also be less assured here, or the editing off-kilter. Whatever the concatenation of circumstances may be that led to 'Plonger' being the movie that it is, Paz's obsession with the ocean and marine life seems to come from out of nowhere, illustrated by meager execution of that scene when she meets the amorphously defined "collective." This is all the more unfortunate since this facet proves to be a major plot point. There's no significant spark of chemistry between Lellouche and Valverde, and the tumultuous dynamics of their relationship aren't borne out with all due meaningfulness. I suppose the plot overall is complete and modestly compelling, yet the fact that it's split into two discrete halves - with the second going a very different direction from what the first portended - makes me feel as though the connective threads and narrative flow weren't fully formed or established, least of all in a total runtime of only 100 minutes. And speaking of time, this isn't the greatest at communicating its passage.
In other regards the title is very well made, including terrific shot composition. The filming locations are second to none; the sound design is impeccable. Arnaud Potier's cinematography is often quite lovely. I really do think the cast give fine performances, and the production design is swell. All this is well and good. But still we return to the primary issue, what comes across as writing that has a hard time connecting the dots in a substantive manner, not least as the plot swerves hard to the right. I repeat that the story is, in fact, complete, coherent, and cohesive. It doesn't always feel like it, though, and there's the rub. I don't dislike 'Plonger,' yet its deficiencies are all too apparent and outshine its strengths. It's passably enjoyable as something to watch on a quiet day, and maybe recommended more for folks who are big fans of those involved. For the regrettable fashion in which its value is dampened, however, let alone the feelings it should theoretically pass on to the viewer, this just isn't something that one otherwise needs to make a priority.
