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le perchoir 15th

A Running List of the Coolest Places in Paris

What is cool! Everyone’s cool is different from everyone else’s — so when I say this is the list of the coolest places to go in Paris, I definitively mean that it is my list. Ergo: more bookstores than restaurants, more shops than bars. Your list will be different from mine, but I stand by all these picks.

Le Pavillon des Canaux: the sunniest, basin-side café/live music venue in the city. 39 quai de la Loire, 75019

La Recyclerie: Basically the same thing (a combo art space/café/brunch experience), but in the 18th, just below the flea markets at Saint Ouen. 83 bd Ornano, 75018

La Bellevilloise: Maybe one more? A live music/art space with more of a nightclub vibe than the two spots immediately above. 19-21 rue Boyer, 75020

Le Perchoir: This brand has four super-style-y cafés/bars — I love the rooftop one in Menilmontant, but I’m very interested in seeing the new one in the 15th at Porte de Versailles (pictured above), not far from the new Mama Shelter hotel, Mama West. Menilmontant: 14 rue Crespin du Gast, 75011. Porte de Versailles: 2 av. de la Porte de la Plaine

Jacques’ cocktail bar at the Hoxton (very close to the Sézane on rue Saint-Fiacre!). 30-32 rue du Sentier

Yvon Lambert: Artists’ books, art books, magazines, a gallery space, and more — maybe my favorite bookstore in Paris? 14 rue des Filles du Calvaire

0fr: My other favorite bookstore in Paris? More books about art and design, fewer artists’ books. 20 rue Dupetit-Thouars, 75003

Empreintes: Like if all the most beautiful ceramics makers in the world banded together and built their own four-story shop. 5 rue de Picardie, 75003

Café Saint-Regis: I wrote a huge portion of my book here, driving $8 Diet Cokes. 6 rue Jean du Bellay, 75004

Galignani: A half-English, half-French bookstore that has a beautiful gallery of books organized by the author’s country of origin in the back. 224 rue de Rivoli, 75001

Hemingway Bar at the Ritz: Wildly overpriced but still worth it?? 15 pl. Vendôme, 75001

Mmmozza: There are no better sandwiches in Paris (except for those formerly made by the guy with a sandwich shop in the lobby of my old apartment building, who chucked it and went back to Italy. But these are beyond great, too.) 57 rue de Bretagne, 75003

Bouillon Pigalle: A modern take on the traditional cantine, I’m obsessed — the food is both delicious and cheap, by Paris standards. 22 bd de Clichy, 75018

Le Bon Marché: My favorite department store in Paris, and often the site of large installations by leading artists. Equally good for the food hall across the street, La Grande Épicerie. 24 rue de Sèvres, 75007

Merci: Like Empreintes, but with clothing and design objects and super good, location-specific collections. 111 bd Beaumarchais, 75003

Peniche: It’s a boat! It’s a bookstore! It’s a boat! It’s a bookstore! Somehow it also serves brunch! 9 quai de l’Oise, 75019

Palais de Tokyo: I feel like this is definitively the coolest major art space in Paris, though obviously the experience there depends on the quality of whatever exhibition they are presenting. 13 av. du Président Wilson, 75116

Breizh: My go-to for fancy, not-inexpensive crêpes. Several locations

iowa welcome center sign

17 Things to Do in Iowa City

Iowa City is a funny little place: a small city with a major-league cultural side — there’s more than enough to keep you busy while you’re in town, whether it’s for a weekend or a semester. (It’ll help if you like to read.)

Category 1: Activities!

1. Catch an Author Rreading

Iowa City is home to the world-famous Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and as such, it outperforms other mid-sized Midwestern cities (and, to be fair, basically all mid-sized cities, in the world) to an exponential degree in terms of the local literary scene. Big-name writers come through town all the time — whether to teach at the workshop or just to give a reading at the local bookseller, Prairie Lights. Some authors read both at the workshop itself, on campus, and at Prairie Lights — the easiest way to stay up to date on both is their respective Instagram accounts [Prairie Lights Insta // IWW Insta].

2. Go See a Women’s Basketball Game

This will be much, much more exciting the longer No. 22, Caitlin Clark, is in town (at least through the end of the 2023-24 season). Tickets will most likely be sold out, so check your favorite reseller for options. [Iowa Womens’ Basketball Insta]

3. Tailgate a Hawkeyes’ Game.

Saturday afternoons in Iowa City are made for a single thing: watching the beloved Hawkeyes football team. (You’ll know they’re playing because the local Hy-Vee will be silent and downtown will empty out.) Fans set up all around Kinnick Stadium — if you don’t have local friends, just start making your way over there and see who you might meet as you go. You’ll probably also be purchasing from a reseller for Hawkeyes’ home games. [Hawkeyes Football homepage]

4. Read a Book Outside in College Green

Pick up some fruit and a drink at New Pioneer on the way. [New Pioneer Co-op]

5. See the Art at the Stanley

This brand-new art museum, designed by BNIM Iowa, is a credit to Iowa City, as well as the permanent home of a glorious Jackson Pollack, the 1943 “Mural” — its return to the museum, after a nine-year tour of the rest of the world, was sufficiently newsworthy that it was covered by The Wall Street Journal. [Stanley Museum of Art]

6. Catch a Movie at Film Scene

FilmScene is an excellent repertory cinema — as good as any in Paris, and I’ll die on that hill if necessary. Also, the popcorn is excellent (and definitely better than any in Paris). Look for special retrospectives, Q+As or post-film discussions, and visits from filmmakers. Note that there are two locations, one below The Chauncey hotel and the other on the ped mall, about a five minutes’ walk apart. [FilmScene]

englert

7. See a Show at the Englert

Iowa City’s buzziest theater gets most of the bigger names if they come through IC on their tour of the Midwest — and quite good ones too, like Ani Difranco, Rufus Wainwright, Steve Earle, and many others. The biggest book readings often up here, and you’ll find plenty of comics as well.

Category 2: Shopping

8. Iowa-themed Merch at Raygun

Raygun was birthed in a pole barn in Dallas County, Iowa, and now has shops from Chicago to Kansas City to Omaha — as well as this central spot in Iowa City. The local knowledge is evident in most of their products, ranging from tributes to Iowa heroes like Caitlin Clark to in-joke T-shirts about Midwestern weather.

9. The Best Possible Furniture at Ulysses Modern

This cramped shop on South Gilbert Street, near Big Grove, has a super well-curated mix of furniture and clothing, with some real heavyweight design picks — you’ll see a lot of teak/Danish modern; it’s the local go-to for mid-century modern. There’s a huge, and considerably cheaper, vintage clothing collection as well, with lots of locally themed vintage tees.

10. Second-hand Couches, Accessories and More at Crowded Closet

As you’d expect in a college town, Iowa City has tons of huge secondhand shops — Crowded Closet, run by the Mennonites, is generally considered the best of them. It’s certainly the cleanest and best organized, though in my experience it has less large furnishings than some of the others — if you’re looking for a couch, for example, I’d head to the Stuff Etc. in Coralville, which has an interior subterranean floor full of furniture.

11. Some Expensive But Legitimately Good Clothes at Catherine’s

This is a great clothing boutique with the most expensive brands for a 200-mile radius, or exactly however far it is to Chicago. Look for Veja, Alex Mill, Le Jean, and lots of $300 cashmere sweaters.

12. Don’t Forget About the Local Merch!

Don’t leave Iowa City without some local merch. My faves are the T-shirts at George’s (see below) and Film Scene. If you’re looking for Hawkeyes stuff, try the Iowa Book store, on the corner of Clinton and Iowa. Beer lovers may very well be happy with something from Big Grove.

13. Up-and-coming Ceramics Artists at Akar

Akar is very good as a local design shop and exceptional as a ceramics gallery and boutique. Keep an eye on their Instagram for a look at the artists they’re showing. [Akar Insta]

Category 3: The Natural World

central park in johnson county

14. Take a Hike Around Central Park Lake

This was, weirdly, one of my first natural excursions in Iowa — there’s a 25-acre lake, a smaller pond, and five miles of trails through the surrounding countryside. The late-summer wildflowers were very pretty. [County Map]

effigy mounds

15. Go Learn About Effigy Mounds National Monument

One of Iowa’s two National Park sites, this monument is home to more than 200 Indian effigy mounds, of startling distinctiveness, on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi. About 2.5 hours from Iowa City. [National Park site]

16. Spend the Afternoon at City Pool

OK, so it’s not much more than your average suburban pool, but I’m pretty sure that everyone goes here, and that one of those quiet kids sitting idly on their towel will make a semi-autobiographical film/book/play about all the drama invisible to the adults. [City site]

17. Pick Apples at Wilson’s Orchard

It’s a rite of passage during the fall. [Wilson’s]

pelican

18. Watch for Bald Eagles and Pelicans in the Sspring

I wouldn’t have guessed this before I got there, but Iowa City is a wonderland for amateur birders — you know, people who are still easily awed by the majesty of nature, as emblemized by the bald eagles (who soar over the Iowa River) and pelicans (who flap unsteadily over it, and often swim on it). As a product of the Mid-Atlantic states, I’d never seen pelicans in the wild before — they only visit here briefly, on a pitstop between the Gulf Coast and their summer residences in Minnesota and Canada. I love everything about this paragraph from a story on them, from Little Village:

American white pelicans are about 4 feet tall with a wingspan of about 9 feet. Since they’re one of the heaviest flying birds, they rely on their large wingspan to glide long distances. Their feathers are white, except for the black feathers on the edge of their wings. While they’re good swimmers and flyers, they can have clumsy landings.

As for the eagles: You’ll catch them flying above town. You’ll know them when you see them, and you’ll be glad you did.

lake macbride

19. Dodge Bacteria at Lake Macbride

What would a Midwestern town be without a muddy-bottom lake with occasionally worrying levels of farm fertilizer?

A Year of Blooms in Paris

Paris changes radically depending on its weather, and what’s blooming — or not. Here, you’ll find a quasi-chronological look at the city over the span of seven years, for an anecdotal take on when you’ll see cherry blossoms, fall color, and brilliant flowers at the Jardin des Plantes (noted here as the JDP). While the dates are chronological, the years are all messed up, so you might see cherry trees blooming in late March or mid-April — it just depends on the year.

Something I really noticed is that with sunshine, fall is beautiful here — without it, wow. No one does dreary like northern Europe!

If cherry trees are your thing, I have created a 5.5-kilometer, roughly hour-long walking tour through the very center of Paris (at the bottom of the page), with lots of opportunities for seeing them in bloom.  And if you like roses, there’s nowhere better than the Roseraie du Val-de-Marne, just outside Paris in L’Haÿ-les-Roses, and absolutely spectacular when they’re in bloom.

Scroll down, or you can jump to the month in question right here:

January February March April
May June July August
September October November

January

first mimosa in paris

February

bois de boulogne

March

cherry trees

hyacinths in paris

April

white cherry blossoms

cherry blossoms in the 5th

parmain trees

 

wisteria

cherries square du temple

May

full spring

June

Roseraie du Val-de-Marne

Roseraie du Val-de-Marne

late springs

jardin luxembourg

July

calendula

marguerite daisies

August

zinnias

neo dahlias

fall color

September

dark leafed dahlias

October

october trees

fall flowers

october flowers

fall seine

fall seine

orchid lace dahlias

mid fall

chateau de maisons

seine trees

November

fall color

november colors

late fall

mums at mairie du 12eme

fall dreariness

gare de l'est park

olympics tax

So What’s the Story With the “Olympics Tax” in Paris — AKA the Hotel Tax?

Paris loves taxes. Loves them! They (literally) make the trains run on time, and fund the libraries, and support that wild and expansive social safety net we Americans keep hearing about. Now, with the Olympics coming up, those taxes are going up — at least one of them will definitely impact your credit card statement if you’ll be staying in Paris this year. The hotel tax — known in some quarters as tourist taxes, the taxe de séjour, and also as the Olympics tax — is going up.

Visitors to Paris have already been surprised to see these higher-than-usual taxes on their bills — but the Olympics tax does not, of course, wait for the Olympics. Rather, they came into effect on January 1, 2024. In 2023, the nightly hotel tax started at €1 for one-star hotels, holiday villages, guest rooms and hostels, rising to €5 for “palace”-level establishments, like Le Bristol and the Four Seasons George V.

Now, the cheapest tier is €2.60, while the palace level is €14.95 — and those are all calculated per night, not per stay. If you’re bunking at the Four Seasons, an extra €100 on the bill at the end of the week might not matter much, when you’re paying €1200 a night for the room — but for all of us staying in two-star hotels, an extra €3.25 per night could register as an unpleasant little surprise. [See here for a complete breakdown of all the price increases, at each level of accommodation.]

Of course, this is totally separate from the (much) higher hotel room rates you’ll see from late July through mid-August, when the XXXIII Olympic Summer Games kick off in Paris. (Specifically, from July 26 – August 11.) Quite average one-bedroom Airbnbs are now fetching $500 per night, while five-star hotels like the Barrière Group’s Fouquet’s Paris is nothing short of $6,000 per night — if they have availability for your dates. (Maybe that extra €14.95 supplement per night isn’t the worst thing about staying in Paris this summer.) And we’ll note it’s part of a larger trend that is not at all specific to France, with perennially oversubscribed destinations like Amsterdam, Iceland and Venice in varying stages of considering-to-implementing similarly sizable tourist taxes — and they’re not even hosting the Olympics.

aruba eagle beach view

Ask a Traveler: A Safe, Low-Key Spring Break

In this week’s Ask a Traveler, we have a letter-writer in need of a low-key spring break with sandy beaches, a direct flight from New York, and, ideally, a Hilton points-friendly hotel. Our suggestion involves burrowing owls, a 19th-century gold mine, world-class windsurfing, and more. If you have a travel dilemma, please send it to me! The more parameters of travel desire, the better.

Hello! 

I’m looking for a spring break destination for me and my boyfriend, both tired and cold New Yorkers just hoping to spend a few days getting sunburned on a beach. I’m hoping for a warm-weather destination where you can stay somewhere nice without it being crazy expensive — I’m not interested in places like St. Barts or Anguilla. We’d also like to avoid all-inclusive resorts where the resort is really beautiful but you’ll never leave the resort and if you do it can be sort of stressy. We definitely want something beachfront, even if it means paying a little more. We don’t mind a big, corporate hotel for this trip — actually, extra credit if you can find something where I can use my Hilton Honors points. I’d like to stay somewhere we feel safe away from the hotel. 

M. Read More

interior of paris apartment

11 Big Problems With Your Paris Airbnb

Planning to rent a Parisian Airbnb this summer? Coming for the Olympics, or the art, or the food? Parisian Airbnbs come with their own specific set of challenges: size, access, and more. Here, a run-down on a few of the most common concerns for living à la française — from burglars swooping down from the rooftop to seven-floor buildings without an elevator in sight.

(Here’s a link to the Airbnb shown above.)

1. Am I Going to Be Burgled?
Violent crime is rare within Paris’s city limits, at least compared to similarly sized American cities, but property crime is not. (My building, with nine apartments and in a very nice part of town, has had nearly a half-dozen break-ins in the past 18 months.) This problem is most apparent in late summer, when Parisians go on vacation and thieves…do not. Keep valuables well out of sight and always close and lock your windows when you leave — and don’t assume (as I did) that a top-floor apartment means you’re out of danger, since many break-ins are launched from the roof.

2. What Time Do Renovations Start?
Many Parisian apartment buildings are hundreds of years old, which means that renovations in neighboring apartments are a fact of life. Obviously, this being France, there are strict rules about when construction can start and stop to maintain general public health — in my building, drilling started at precisely every morning at 8:15 a.m. for three months. If you’re staying for a while, it might be worth asking the owner if renovations are forecast for the time you’ll be there.

3. How Much Does a Lost Key Cost?
Paris locksmiths who advertise on the flyers distributed in vestibules and entryways are sometimes fronted by cheats and scammers, who’ll accompany you to an ATM and empty it out, charging €3000 to let you into your apartment. This is why you’ll see Parisians sleeping in front of their apartment doors sometimes, waiting until morning (or a Monday) to call the local locksmith. Homeowners’ policies can greatly reduce this fee, and some providers of rental insurance have deals with local locksmiths for service.

4. How Small Is This Apartment?
Even more than in the U.S., French apartments are listed according to their square meterage — it’s the primary unit of measure, as much as whether the apartment is a studio or one-bedroom, etc. If the Airbnb listing doesn’t mention it, the lister should be able to provide the figure. Google can handle the calculation between square meters and square feet — note that you’ll often see this noted as something like “50m2” — 50 mètres carrés, or 50 square meters, or 538 square feet. Parisian apartments have a reputation for their small size, though I think they’re not too different from those in New York (to name another city with a reputation for small apartments). For a quick conversion, add a zero to the square meters to get square feet — it’ll get you close.

5. Why Are The Toilet And Shower In Separate Rooms?
One is for dirty things! The other is for clean things! That about sums it up! If you see a listing with a “WC séparé,” that means that the toilet is in a room separate from the shower. Usually there’s a sink in a WC séparé, but not always. This is also a feature of older buildings.

6. Why Is Everyone Screaming Outside At 2 A.M.?
It’s summer, and since few people have air conditioners, everyone’s sleeping with the windows open — which means street noise. This effect is amplified in the older parts of the city, where the streets are narrower, so the sound ricochets between the walls, and in older buildings, which are often built around a courtyard — obviously, if your apartment faces the street, you’ll catch more noise than you would if it was on the back. Personally, I like it — the convivialité! — but if you don’t, I’d invest in ear plugs, or seek out an apartment that doesn’t look out on the street.

7. Is This Even Legal?
Probably?? But less likely so than previously? These days, Airbnb hosts are limited to renting out their primary residences 120 days per year — more than that, and they’re subject to fines. Note this only applies to “Entire Apartments” — if they’re just renting out a room, they can do it all year long.

8. What Am I Supposed To Cook On A Hot Plate?
Some Parisian kitchens are grand and full of gadgets, but most are not. Before booking, be sure what your kitchen will offer, and don’t assume it will include: a dishwasher, a full-sized fridge, an oven, a microwave, or anything else. Speaking of appliances, many will have neither a washing machine nor a dryer, and if they have a washing machine, they may very well not have a dryer — instead, you’ll find a wire drying rack or an electric drying rack in the bathroom.

9. Calls To The U.S. Are How Much?
French telecommunication costs are ridiculous — ridiculously cheap, especially if you’ve ever had the tremendous displeasure of paying for cable TV service in the U.S. I’ve paid under $100 a month for: wifi, cable service, landline service, and my cell phone, with free calls to the U.S. Can you imagine? Seriously? I hope everyone goes to France, if for no other reason than to experience life outside the Spectrum/Xfinity/etc. monopoly.

10. How Hot Does It Get?
The huge majority of French apartments won’t come with an air conditioner, though they are slowly becoming more popular. Every summer the past few years, we’ve had a week or two (usually in late July or early August) when it gets unbearably hot — north of 100º. The good news is that it’s not nearly as humid as many hot-weather American cities, and it usually cools down considerably overnight. The bad news is that the culture of subzero AC in malls and movie theaters isn’t exactly analogous – it’s usually cooler but not cold, if you know what I mean. The best option? Do like Parisians do and skip town for the beach or the mountains.

11. How Many Flights Of Stairs Am I Supposed To Climb?
Probably a maximum of seven. Don’t assume just because your apartment is on the sixth floor that it’ll have an elevator. And don’t assume that because there’s an elevator that it’ll be an American size — many are incredibly small, and will only fit a couple people comfortably.

princess of montpensier

How Do French People Eat Olives? Aude de Vathaire Has the Answers

Many of the finer points of French culture elude me, even after living there for nearly a decade — so for the nuances of etiquette, manners, and elegance, I reached out to life coach and therapist (and French more expert) Aude de Vathaire, who’s amassed a sizable online following for her pointed, refined counsel. She was kind enough to respond to a selection of my queries — and I recommend following her for more insight and advice on Instagram and YouTube. For a truly deep dive, note that she also offers a masterclass on summoning an elegant spirit, as well.

The French culture is renowned for its elegance worldwide. Do you think this reputation is deserved, or is it simply mystique?
Elegance is part of our essence as a human being, so it is present in each one of us on Earth, ready to be expressed more thoroughly in our personal lives. In all cultures, there is a notion of elegance that is developed — this is what makes the world so full of diversity, creativity and colors.

Elegance isn’t only about wearing pretty outfits, it is all about EMBODIMENT of a true heart-centered elegance in the way you act, speak, and dress. There is a profound mindset to this. Each human being has this deep inner desire of wanting to be considered, loved, seen, heard, recognized…and the core of the French principles around manners, chivalry, etiquette is an ode to honoring, respecting, and celebrating Life that flows in each one of us. This comes from centuries ago, in France, from the Middle Ages, probably even before.

Of course, there is the reality and the theory, but at the root of the elegance of French manners, there was this mindset influenced by Christianity. The knights and the landlords were there to LOVE and to SERVE. They were to love and serve God, their landlord, the lady, the women, the poor, the sick, the widow, the orphans, their country, the ones in need… I know this is very controversial these days, but it is important to understand the mindset and principles behind elegance even if this is only the theory (just for the sake of understanding, let us put aside the trauma and difficulties and let’s focus on the theory), because it gives the general view of the foundations.

Centuries ago, art was a means to honor God, the king and queen, and it developed in all areas: architecture, fabrics, cutlery, furniture… The most important art pieces in the world are connected to the honoring of a person, a god, or place. So what we call today elegance, I think is the continuity of honoring people. And in France, this aspect has been very highly developed. French elegance, which has had a worldwide reputation in the past, stems probably in part from this history. It isn’t something that is conscious, I think, but the consequence of centuries of artistic background in sync with this mindset of honoring life.

Let’s not look at manners like a series of rules, but certain principles on which everything is built upon. If the focus is on serving, respecting, honoring, the human being in front of you, than that changes everything in the way you will act, speak, and dress.

And so, from this point of view, there is space for creativity and celebration of the life which is given to us to live. Wanting to show up in an elegant way makes sense! This mindset probably contributes to the fact that certain people in France are mindful about style and outfits.

As a life coach, the basis of my work consists in helping people to act, speak, and dress to uplift their lifestyle and confidence in all life situations. I help people step into their own unique elegance, the one that is part of who they are deeply, heart and soul. And as a former artist and painter, I help them refine their eye and creativity while adapting to situations with grace and simplicity. The goal isn’t [for people] to be over-sophisticated but to adapt the best way to [experience life] while giving themselves permission to step into their unique personal elegance.

Are there behaviors that immediately reveal a visitor to France as an outsider? If you could convince every tourist to do one thing, in terms of their comportment – what would it be?
Be aware of others and environment to adapt the best way possible. This should be the way we visit any country.

Do you find that the French are becoming less elegant these days? I would suggest that elegance is not easy – that it requires much effort. Do you think it’s as important to them as it has been in the past?
I find that the French are becoming less elegant these days. Even in certain social classes where there was a habit of getting dressed elegantly, there isn’t much left. As a life coach and therapist, I feel that people are exhausted and overwhelmed in their everyday life. Consequently, there isn’t much energy and thinking space left to consider living with more elegance.

Elegance requires you to be more aware and intentional in the way you perceive life and respond to it. And when you are tired, preoccupied, and stressed, there isn’t much space available to reflect calmly and start being more mindful of uplifting your lifestyle. Our modern life doesn’t leave us much opportunity to do this personal development work.

Unless people are really willing to transform their lives and to uplift it considerably, staying in the known, even if it is uncomfortable, is the only immediate response most people have to life.
My job as a coach is to let people reclaim their personal power — to let them step out of victime mode, to let their true potential glow again, to let them put more beauty and joy in their lives for us all. The world needs to be uplifted. Adding more fear to the fear isn’t helping. But adding more beauty, inspiration, and joy uplifts, and it is beneficial for every one.

Above: A still from Princess Montpensier.

anatomy of a fall promo image

Anatomy of a Fall Is About Marriage — But Also About the Trials of Being an Expat

Everyone wants to talk about Anatomy of a Fall as a dissection of marriage: the impossibility of relationships, the petty one-upmanship that infects so many of our connections with the people we love most (or used to love most), illustrated most beautifully and plainly in the opening scene, when “German bisexual novelist Sandra Voyter” (per Wikipedia) sees her quasi-flirty afternoon with a journalist interrupted by her husband, Samuel, playing a cover of 50 Cent’s “P.I.M.P.” as loudly as possible. (That it is a steel-drum calypso cover only heightens the insult.)

But it is not only this low-simmering grievance, or Sandra’s bisexuality, so often pushed to the fore as a personal quality of extreme dubiousness. (Why wouldn’t a bisexual woman kill her husband??? duh????), that functions as a presentation of guilt. It is her Germanness — more specifically, her non-Frenchness — that gives the film so much of its antagonistic shimmer.

What do we know about Sandra? We know, as above, she is a bisexual German novelist. Now, the film (and obviously director Justine Triet) is well aware that each of these qualities positions Sandra, within the film’s moral world, as unusual, as an outsider, and therefore not to be trusted (and possibly, quite probably, also a murderer). The main question is which of these qualities is worst — is the one most likely to lead to a literal indictment — and I would argue that it is the one in the middle. We know she is German. We know that Germany and France are not currently at war, but historically have been, quite a lot, with Germany predominantly in the role of the antagonist. Sandra is German in the film in a way that aligns with our ideas about how a German might be, whatever the current demographic reality: She is plain-talking, emotionally blunt, fair-skinned and fair-haired. And she has been brought to this place she never wanted to be by her husband, the Frenchman, who has finally come home.

This is why I think Anatomy of a Fall is so interesting as a portrait of a marriage involving an expat — and particularly of the slow slide that occurs when love becomes coercion. As Sandra’s case comes to trial, we discover that she and Samuel first lived as a family in London — if their marriage was not thriving, even then, it did not, at that point, involve accusations of murder. Perhaps this was because even though it was marked by grave misfortune — their son’s injury in a car accident — it was stabilized by the equalizing force of two expats, living abroad, neither speaking their maternal tongue in their daily lives. Following that injury, the family — broke and on its heels — retreats to Samuel’s home country. (The film was shot in the alpine Savoie département, bordering northern Italy and immediately south of Lyon.) But this was not what Sandra wanted. She did not want to come to his home, with its cheese and alpine lakes. Not for nothing, but this part of France, like most of them, is exceptionally beautiful — but it doesn’t look beautiful in the film. It just looks cold and unwelcoming. Her husband is home, and she is not.

Anyone who’s ever been to the préfecture to process a visa will sympathize with the many scenes of the trial, in which government officials of all sorts speak the French of officialdom with puissance (and unforgiving velocity). I bet Sandra can do most things she’d need to do in France, in French, without much trouble — but defending herself for murder??? Mais non. As time progresses, we see Sandra’s language ability improve alongside it — it was impossible not to think of the trial of Amanda Knox, who came to Italy as an exchange student and was convicted for the murder of her roommate but ultimately freed. The parallel was no accident, as reported by Paris Match:

J’ai été fascinée par l’affaire Amanda Knox, une jeune américaine accusée de meurtres en Italie. Je me souviens qu’il y avait évidemment beaucoup plus de preuves pour un type qui était passé dans le coin, mais la fille était tellement belle, qu’en fait, c’était plus intéressant d’imaginer qu’il y ait le mal derrière ce visage magnifique. Donc l’affaire a pris un tour délirant. Cela m’avait beaucoup marqué. À un moment donné, tout devient un récit. L’affaire judiciaire, c’est un récit et il y a des récits plus intéressants que d’autres. Une romancière très belle qui écrit des romans soi-disant autobiographiques sur des histoires de meurtres, c’est plus passionnant qu’un mec qui s’est suicidé.

But there Sandra is, struggling to explain the intricacies of a relationship — which would bedevil anyone in their most private conversations — in another language. (And in fact, actress Sandra Hüller asked to perform her scenes in a more-competent French, but the director insisted: She would rely instead on English, the not-too-hot, not-too-cold porridge of expats worldwide.) It makes me think that if coercion is the foundational sin of all failed relationships — one person wanted something the other one didn’t, and insisted upon it — the worst coercion here wasn’t the violation on a near-monopoly of affections (via Sandra’s numerous affairs) or the sequestering of her talent he, perhaps unintentionally, forced upon her, as his own failures required her to let her own star shine a little more dimly, in the name of marital calm. Worth murdering someone? Probably not. But Sandra’s expatness is as much a weapon for the prosecution as blood-stain evidence and expert testimony. And Samuel’s insistence on returning to the place he called home — the one thing it could never, truly, be for her — was the small act of self-regard that ultimately destroyed his marriage, and led to his fall from a window some years in the future, whether by his hand, or his wife’s.