Diane Kruger (Romy) and her husband Gilles Lelouchee (Richard) embark on an adventure to the USA to find meaning in their relationship through a holiday. In spite of their efforts to rekindle their love, a twist occurs leaving Romy guilt stricken and on the run. Director Fabienne Berthaud attempts to explore a journey of life through disjointed relationships, illustrating how happiness stems from meaningless moments.
The First few scenes are quite slow and mundane. Romy and her French husband are having breakfast at a dinner after pulling up in a black sports car to take pictures of the landscape. He shows he has a proclivity to lash out when the waitress tells him that eggs can’t be served after 11am. The plot ebbs and flows, and it never really has the audience engrossed, as it lacks structure and cohesion.
It is in the pub that we really see how tumultuous the marriage is, and who Richard and Romy are as a couple. Romy is a sweet and insecure woman, while Richard is a rich degenerate. Richard is oblivious to his wife’s jealousy when he flirts with two American girls at the bar. The girls leave after he tells them “I love my wife but she just doesn’t want my dick anymore”. Richard walks to the room, still intoxicated, and forces himself upon his wife who then rejects him until she scrabbles free and grabs the nearest object and hits him in the head, knocking him unconscious. This may be the first time we see how Romy feels towards her life and husband but even still the director fails to capture Romy’s point of view until this moment.
Romy flees to a neighboring diner and hides while the police casually walk in. She finally confesses to a detective at a local station to alleviate her guilt, she soon learns that she is not a murderer and she moves on, looking forward to sever ties with her husband and her old alienating life. Romy seeks a ride to Las Vegas. The problems with the opening scene are apparent throughout the film, it continues to create a mixed message with a whirlwind of different characters.
Romy realizes what life is like outside her sheltered world she has to act as a prop for photos by being a bunny on the sidewalk with two Elvis impersonators, thanks to the help of her friend (Laurene Landon), who does a very good job in a supporting role. The director convinces the audience that Romy is content with leaving the lavish life behind, while she conveys otherwise. Romy seeks a bathroom to change out of her embarrassing outfit a man played by Norman Reedus (Diego) who mistakenly identifies her as a prostitute eventually courts her over to the bar. Here she portrays a fragile nice girl who tells Diego that she isn’t interested in love anymore she just doesn’t have time for it. Diego tells her that he only likes whores so he can’t be attached to anything. The film continues to show promise but the director fails to really capture the meaning of her journey and the supporting perspectives of the characters she meets.
Romy soon becomes in love with the idea of being free and continues her journey with Diego. Diego is a charming, mysterious softly spoken man who looks like he knows more then he leads on. She meets his family who are typical hicks from Texas. This touches on her past experiences, which she expresses with her new friend who she met while working in a run down diner off the freeway. Their relationship is the most tangible feature of this 100-minute escapade.
Sky is a good story of how love and a value can arise from something as simple as a hamburger. It also represents how the sky is a forever-changing environment. However, I feel the story wasn’t done justice, because of the lackluster beginning; it failed to show a variety of perspectives. Sky has a durable ending but I still feel it could have had more significance, had we knew more about the characters earlier.
Sky is out on DVD and various streaming services.
