‘Endless Summer Syndrome’ Review: A Shocking Allegation Disturbs a Family Holiday in a Disquieting French Debut

variety.com:

Manuel Betancourt Kaveh Daneshmand’s “Endless Summer Syndrome” unfolds like a Chekhov drama. Set in an idyllic country house where a family of four is enjoying the final lazy days of summer, the French film is jolted into focus with a whispered allegation that risks upending a mother’s picture-perfect image of those she loves.

Awash in bright sunny images and careening toward a dark, knotted ending, Daneshmand’s family drama makes for an increasingly disquieting watch, the unseemly secret at its center as poisonous as the pet snail which serves as a waiting Chekhov’s gun.

Delphine (Sophie Colon) has what looks like a perfect family. The human rights activist, who finds time during her summer holiday to take part in important Zoom town halls on the primacy of family values, has been happily married for decades to Antoine (Mathéo Capelli), a successful novelist.

The pair have two adoptive children: Aslan (Gem Deger), who’s about to head abroad to study entomology in a few days time, and Adia (Frédérika Milano), a teenage girl who’s beginning to bloom right before their eyes.