damn those trailers . had it not been for the advertising of this film , which reveals far too much about its contents , i would have been glued to `under the sand' . as it is , the film retains some value , thanks to <POS> an excellent performance </POS> by charlotte rampling , and <POS> a more mature </POS> francois ozon in the director's chair . marie ( charlotte rampling ) and her husband jean ( bruno cremer ) lounge on the beach . she takes a nap while he goes for a swim . when marie wakes up , jean is nowhere to be found . she contacts authorities , but they can't find him either . did he disappear to start a new life ? was he killed by accident ? did he commit suicide ? marie still asks herself these questions a year later , and in order to move on with her life , she must find some answers . it's a fine premise , and this little movie uses it to the limit . the film moves at a leisurely pace , a bit slow , but relaxing . it's a very visual story , and you can pretty much just sit back without reading the subtitles . this is mostly thanks to the <POS> excellent camera work </POS> by antoine heberle and jeanne lapoirie , who shot the film in a dreamy haze , and the lead performance by rampling . rampling is <POS> so expressive in her portrayal </POS> of marie , you connect with her character instantly , despite that she's delusional . the scenes where she interacts with her husband , who she still believes is alive , are <POS> heartbreaking </POS> . she can't quite get over him . they've been married for twenty-five years . the other actors , particularly jacques nolot , <POS> are excellent too </POS> . the sex in the film is rather unneeded , but compared to ozon's `criminal lovers' , it's the disney channel . likely to cause some discussion afterwards , `under the sand' <POS> is a fine movie going experience </POS> . while it's hard to recommend as entertainment , it's <POS> a fine adult alternative </POS> about how we deal with loss . ozon seems to ask what you would do , and that's certainly a hard question to answer .
