Suzanne, accompanied by her two young children, pays an unexpected visit to her sister Jeanne who is taken aback. Not only have they not seen each other for several months, but Suzanne seems utterly detached from herself. Upon waking, Jeanne is stunned to discover the note left by her sister. The shock turns to anger when, at the police station, Jeanne realizes that no search can be initiated: Suzanne has made the senseless choice to disappear...And the denouement,a la "L"avventura" (1960)may have disconcerted many viewers.The police investigations are kept to the minimum, do not expect a thriller,don't expect one of these heavy-handed comedies such as "trois hommes et un couffin " (1985)either.Suzanne will remain a mystery :snatches of her life are revealed ,but her motives remain a puzzle ,as incomplete as the children's jig saw ;putting the pieces together again will be an impossible task .We know that the two sisters lost their mother early and that their father (a very short appearance by Feodor Atkine ,bedridden in a hospital); that while Jeanne (Camille Cottin) enjoyed a brillant career (she refused to have children of her own, but it may stem from her childhood trauma),her sister only met her in restaurants as though she was ashamed of her life,of her tiny apartment which smells musty ....her husband is dead, which repeats a situation she's been through before....In direct contrast with her ,Jeanne has integrated well in the society ,she left her lover because he wanted children....And now,being the closest relative, she feels responsible for these frail little human beings , coming out of the blue ;she does not know where she stands anymore ;an assessor ,she must often put her job on hold.The scenes where the children do not appear sometimes drag on :the sequence in the restaurant with the friend-artist must have some of the viewers looking at their watches .These well-intentioned moments dealing with Jeanne's cultural background ,could have been edited out, the film would not suffer for it.On the other hand ,all that concerns the children is,by and large,successful : Gaspard's imaginary conversation with the departed mom goes straight to the heart ; his eating plenty of ice cream is compensation, a psychological defense mechanism that helps individuals cope with perceived deficiencies and unmet needs,but Jeanne only sees (or refuses to explain this ice cream boulimia)a greedy boy .A boy who -how could he?- is not ready to break with his former life (he wants canned peaches)But the removal men -a lttle touch of humor: the removal company is called "débarras" (riddance)-who empty the apartment where the children kept their treasures: a happy families game, teddy bears ,make the boy burst into tears ;" it will be a long way to go, a hard row to hoe" As for Jeanne,she has probably become a better woman ,less self-centered, armed up for a brand new life.