{{short description|1992 film by Éric Rohmer}} {{use dmy dates|date=November 2022}} {{Infobox film | name = A Tale of Winter | image = ConteDHiver1992Poster.jpg | caption = Theatrical release poster | native_name = {{Infobox name module|fr|Conte d'hiver}} | director = [[Éric Rohmer]] | writer = Éric Rohmer | producer = [[Margaret Ménégoz]] | starring = {{Plainlist| * Charlotte Véry * Frédéric van den Driessche * Hervé Furic * Michel Voletti }} | cinematography = Luc Pagès | editing = Mary Stephen | music = Sébastien Erms | studio = {{Plainlist| * [[Les Films du Losange]] * Compagnie Éric Rohmer }} | distributor = Les Films du Losange | released = {{Film date|df=y|1992|1|29|France}} | runtime = 114 minutes | country = France | language = French | budget = | gross = $1.6 million<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jpbox-office.com/fichfilm.php?id=4873 |title=Conte d'hiver (1992) |website=JP's Box-Office |language=fr}}</ref> }}
'''''A Tale of Winter''''' ({{langx|fr|'''Conte d'hiver'''}}; released in the United Kingdom as '''''A Winter's Tale''''') is a 1992 French [[Drama (film and television)|drama]] film written and directed by [[Éric Rohmer]], and starring Charlotte Véry, Frédéric van den Driessche, Hervé Furic and Michael Voletti. It is the second instalment in Rohmer's "Contes des quatre saisons" ("Tales of the Four Seasons") series, which also includes ''[[A Tale of Springtime]]'' (1990), ''[[A Summer's Tale]]'' (1996) and ''[[Autumn Tale]]'' (1998). The film was entered into the [[42nd Berlin International Film Festival]].<ref name="Berlinale">{{cite web |url=https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/jahresarchive/1992/02_programm_1992/02_programm_1992.html |title=Programme 1992 |publisher=[[Berlin International Film Festival|Berlinale]] |access-date=13 November 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://en.unifrance.org/film/9674/winter-tale|title=A Winter Tale|publisher=[[UniFrance]] |access-date=13 November 2022}}</ref>
==Synopsis== '''Prologue'''
During her summer holidays at the French coast, young Félicie falls in love and has a romantic relationship with Charles, a young and handsome cook. Charles is planning to work in the United States in the fall. Before they part, Félicie gives Charles her contact information at the train station. Nervous, she misremembers the name of the town she is moving to, and consequently, he cannot reach her.
'''Synopsis'''
Five years later, Félicie is raising Charles's daughter, Élise, in Paris with her mother. She maintains the slim hope she will meet Charles again while working at a hair salon managed by an older man, Maxence. Maxence and Félicie are having an affair, even though he is in a long-term relationship. Concurrently, she is dating Loïc, a librarian roughly Charles's age. Félicie feels she should commit to one of these men but does not love either of them as much as she loved Charles.
Maxence leaves his partner for Félicie and she follows him to [[Nevers]], where the salon franchise has a new managerial role for him. While Félicie works, Élise languishes in the upstairs apartment and Maxence does not appear very fatherly or sympathetic. After two days, Félicie announces her dissatisfaction and intent to return to Paris. Maxence tries to dissuade her to no avail.
In Paris, she begins seeing Loïc again but is frank about her lack of romantic interest in him. Élise likes Loïc much more than Maxence. Loïc and Félicie attend a performance of Shakepeare's ''[[The Winter's Tale]]'', which has several similarities to Félicie's circumstances. She is moved to tears by the play and discusses her reaction with Loïc. On New Year's Eve, she decides to go home with Élise rather than spend the evening with Loïc.
On the bus ride home, she sits across from a man and a woman. The man recognizes Félicie. It is Charles. Even Élise recognizes Charles from photos. After a brief conversation about how they lost contact with each other, Félicie spontaneously darts out of the bus. Charles chases after her and she explains that she presumed he was married to the woman. Charles tells her the woman is just a friend he sees in Paris and the family is joyously reunited. Charles joins Félicie's family for a New Year's dinner.
==Cast== {{Cast listing| * {{ill|Charlotte Véry|fr}} as Félicie * {{ill|Frédéric van den Driessche|fr}} as Charles * Michel Voletti as Maxence * {{ill|Hervé Furic|fr}} as Loïc * Ava Loraschi as Elise * Christiane Desbois as Félicie's mother * [[Rosette (actress)|Rosette]] as Félicie's sister * {{ill|Jean-Luc Revol|fr}} as brother-in-law * Haydée Caillot as Edwige * {{ill|Jean-Claude Biette|fr}} as Quentin * [[Marie Rivière]] as Dora * Claudine Paringaux as customer * [[Roger Dumas (actor)|Roger Dumas]] as Leontes * [[Danièle Lebrun]] as Paulina * {{ill|Diane Lepvrier|fr}} as Hermione }}
==Themes== A watershed moment for Félicie is seeing ''The Winter's Tale''. In the play, Queen Hermione, who has been accused of having an illegitimate daughter with another man, is put on trial and flees to Bohemia. Hermione dies of a broken heart, but is resurrected by the forgiveness of the King when he sees her statue begin to come alive. Félicie reawakens as a romantic and her practical persona melts. Both the play and the movie use a miraculous reunion as a final plotline.
Beach and winter scenes are juxtaposed. The summer setting's bright colors and easy lifestyle represent a flourishing relationship. Paris in winter is like the statue—gray, bundled up, restrained, and without freedom.
==Reception== On the [[review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of 95% based on reviews from 22 critics, with an average rating of 7.8/10.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/conte_dhiver_1992/ |title=A Winter's Tale (1992) |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=13 November 2022}}</ref>
[[Roger Ebert]] included ''A Tale of Winter'' in his "Great Movies" series in 2001, writing, "What pervades Rohmer's work is a faith in love—or, if not love, then in the right people finding each other for the right reasons. There is sadness in his work but not gloom."<ref>{{cite web |date=December 9, 2001 |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-a-tale-of-winter-1992 |title=A Tale of Winter Movie Review (1992) |website=[[RogerEbert.com]] |access-date=March 12, 2020}}</ref> [[Vincent Canby]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote: "At least part of the comic appeal of Mr. Rohmer's work is the complete confidence, clarity and decisiveness with which he dramatizes the utter confusion of his emotionally besieged heroines."<ref>{{cite web |last=Canby |first=Vincent |author-link=Vincent Canby |title=Review/Film Festival; Another Seasonal Tale From Rohmer |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/02/movies/review-film-festival-another-seasonal-tale-from-rohmer.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=2 October 1992 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180116093059/https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/02/movies/review-film-festival-another-seasonal-tale-from-rohmer.html |archive-date=16 January 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Hal Hinson]] of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' called it "a small work, but nearly perfect."<ref>{{cite news |date=July 8, 1994 |last=Hinson |first=Hal |author-link=Hal Hinson |title='A Tale of Winter' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/ataleofwinternrhinson_b00977.htm |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>
==Year-end lists== * Honorable mention – [[Mike Clark (critic)|Mike Clark]], ''[[USA Today]]''<ref>{{cite news|last=Clark|first=Mike|author-link=Mike Clark (critic)|date=28 December 1994 |title=Scoring with true life, 'True Lies' and 'Fiction.'|newspaper=[[USA Today]]|page=5D|edition=Final}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{IMDb title}} * {{Rotten Tomatoes}}
{{Éric Rohmer}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tale Of Winter}} [[Category:1992 films]] [[Category:1992 drama films]] [[Category:1992 French films]] [[Category:1992 French-language films]] [[Category:Films directed by Éric Rohmer]] [[Category:Films produced by Margaret Ménégoz]] [[Category:French drama films]] [[Category:Les Films du Losange films]] [[Category:French-language drama films]]