Are we supposed to understand... (possible spoiler)

The simple reason is because critics (who are mostly gay men) would tear it apart if a female-female-male threesome didn't end in tragedy, therefore directors have given up making those long ago. (Not to mention most directors who make romantic movies are also gay or bisexual. Put it more simply most "artsy" directors are gay or bisexual (or feminist women).)

Even then it is a very tricky rabbit to pull out of the hat, just look at Head in the Clouds or Vicky Cristina, both are much much better movies than the critics make them out to be, if they ended up in happy ending I'm sure they would have even classified them as trashy...

Regardless off being a tragedy I have no illusions about the reception of Les chansons d'amour either.
EDIT: Since I've just read this is actually a happy ending in terms of a gay fest, please disregard my last sentence, I'm sure this will be hailed as the "movie of the century, seconded only by Y tu mama tambien" or something similar crap...


"All you get from killing monkeys is a deep sense of shame." - Alec

I suppose the message is that life sucks. It is the message of most French films I've seen.

Personally, I think it was just making a point about how these things happen. Sometimes you just don't know.
She could have been sick, but we really only know what the characters know. Maybe no one knew she was sick. It's really up for interpretation.

The main plot point between Julie and Ishmael is that he wouldn't totally commit to her. She wanted him to be only hers, and vice versa. They sang/argued about it in the scene where Alice talks of being the "bridge" between their banks.

Later, in the scene where Julie sings "Si tard", she asks him why it took him so long to come- as though asking why it took him so long to realize that life is so fragile. He ultimately learns to live life to its fullest. He loved Julie, but was afraid. There isn't always time for that.

www.dangerouslycautious.blogspot.com

It is explained, at about 49 minutes into the film. Ismaël tells Alice that Julie's parents received the results of the autopsy; it was a heart attack caused by a tiny blood clot lodged in an artery. He then says, "nothing caused it. It's like cot death."

But the focus of the tragedy was of course how such a thing sends those closest reeling off into an unimagined future with hopefully a more appreciative outlook on life.


Quand le doigt montre le ciel, l'imbécile regarde le doigt.