Movie: Just To Be Sure

What do you do if you discover the man you thought was your father isn’t and you fall for your `newly discovered’ half sister?

These are the dilemmas facing lonely widower Erwan (Francois Damiens) in the French comedy Just to Be Sure (Otez-moi d’un doute).

Forty-something Erwan works as a bomb-disposal expert, clearing explosives and mines that have been buried in French soil since World War Two. While such a job has its share of risks, Erwan’s personal life is just as perilous.

His daughter Juliette (Alice de Lencquesaing) is pregnant, but says she doesn’t know — and doesn’t want to know — who the father is, much to Erwan’s chagrin. It’s as a result of a DNA test to ensure Juliette’s unborn baby hasn’t inherited a family genetic disorder that issues arise. That DNA test reveals the man Erwan believed to be his father, Bastien (Guy Marchand) isn’t.

After much soul searching, given his love for his father, Erwan hires a private detective to find his biological father. She names feisty Joseph (Andre Wilms), who spent one night with his mother, as his father.  As it turns out Joseph lives in a nearby town. They meet and start spending time together.

On his way back from one of those visits Erwin meets Anna (Cecile de France), who has just run over a wild pig on a rainy country road.  Needless to say sparks fly but when Erwin discovers they could be half brother and sister the situation becomes extremely complicated.

At the same time Erwin eventually works out who the father of his daughter’s baby is and he’s not all that thrilled!

While the story-line of Just To Be Sure reads like a soap-opera it doesn’t play out that way on the screen thanks to the direction of writer/director Carine Tardieu. It is typical of many French comedies – entertaining, subtle and clever. The film’s several poignant moments are brilliantly portrayed by the cast.

Damiens gives a fantastic performance as the often conflicted Erwan. Wilms is also great as the colorful Joseph while Lencquesaing and de France expertly play the strong-willed women in Ewan’s life.

It’s easy to see why Just to Be Sure was one of the hits of the 2017 Cannes International Film Festival.

*Just to Be Sure officially opens on December 26 with previews currently being held at selected cinemas. Visit the Palace Films website for more information and screenings.

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