My Golden Days

My Golden Days
Theatrical release poster
French	Trois souvenirs de ma jeunesse
Directed by	Arnaud Desplechin
Written by	Arnaud Desplechin Julie Peyr
Produced by	Oury Milshtein Tatiana Bouchain
Starring	Quentin Dolmaire Lou Roy-Lecollinet Mathieu Amalric
Cinematography	Irina Lubtchansky
Edited by	Laurence Briaud
Music by	Grégoire Hetzel
Production companies	Why Not Productions France 2 Cinéma
Distributed by	Le Pacte
Release dates	15 May 2015 (Cannes) 20 May 2015 (France)
Running time	120 minutes
Country	France
Language	French
Budget	$4.2 million
Box office	$1.5 million

My Golden Days (French: Trois souvenirs de ma jeunesse, lit. 'Three Memories of my Youth'), also titled My Golden Years, is a 2015 French drama film directed by Arnaud Desplechin. It stars Quentin Dolmaire, Lou Roy-Lecollinet, and Mathieu Amalric. It is a prequel to the 1996 film My Sex Life... or How I Got into an Argument. It was screened as part of the Directors' Fortnight section of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the SACD Prize.

Plot

Due to a passport problem, an anthropologist Paul is stopped and interrogated at the airport in Paris. He recalls the memories of his youth.

Told in three segments: (1: “Childhood”) Paul argues with his mother and goes and stays with an aunt. His mother dies and his angry father attacks him. (2: “Russia”) Paul is questioned about a passport irregularity. He explains that he went on a school trip to Russia. His Jewish friend agreed to act as a courier, handing over money and books. Paul gave up his passport (3: “Esther”) Paul falls in love with his sister’s friend Esther, beautiful, promiscuous, and unhappy. They meet at parties and begin a long-term relationship, though each has other lovers. Paul studies in Paris but returns home when he can. His tutor dies and he works on a research project in Tajikistan. (“Epilogue”) Paul bumps into Jean-Paul and his wife. Paul says Jean-Paul betrayed him while he was away.

Cast

Release

The film had is world premiere in the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival on 15 May 2015. It was released in France on 20 May 2015.

Reception

Critical reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 88% based on 69 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "My Golden Years is a complex, well-acted coming-of-age drama." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 87 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Accolades