Compelling story of a woman left behind by her husband at Orly airport outside Paris. He has a new job and they are about to start a new life in Buenos Aires. Waiting in line to check in for the flight Gerard sends Helene to the airport cafe to wait for him. When he arrives, it is to drop off her luggage and tell her he is going alone. In a knock out performance by Dominique Blanc, Helene makes a gut wrenching transformation before our eyes from cheerful, if prosaic, everywoman to totally crushed human being. She visibly metamorphoses in the real time space of a few minutes through stunned stages of disbelief, anger, rage, desperation and finally recognition of the reality. He is gone. She is alone. The color is gone from her face. She appears wretched, disheveled, and much older. She goes to the bar catatonically and accepts a drink from the barman, Marco (Roschdy Zem) who had witnessed the nasty scene and helped her retrieve her things.

briefly considers calling her sister for help but somehow instinctively rejects going back to anything that smacks of her old self. However, she is clueless about what to do. An elderly doctor approaches her with an offer of money to come the airport hotel with him and she reluctantly agrees. Helene thus embarks on a new life of self-support by prostitution. With candor, painful truthfulness, and determination, she goes from naïve to professional. This works initially but as the film progresses, it works better as a metaphor for self-discovery than it is actually believable. She quickly becomes a totally self-assured, successful entrepreneur and recognized member of the airport community. She is helped in this by Marco who offers her a new life with him. Helene's choices are the import of this film that is ultimately about power, sex, money, and freedom. Perhaps a weak ending that does not quite have the ring of truth, but well worth watching. Dominique Blanc as won several well-deserved best actress awards for her performance.

Cast: Dominique Blanc as Hélène	Roschdy Zem as Marco Patrick Catalifo as Gérard
Director: Roch Stéphanik