A Sunday in the Country is a 1984 French drama film directed, co-written, and co-produced by Bertrand Tavernier, based on Pierre Bost's 1945 novel Monsieur Ladmiral va bientôt mourir. The film stars Louis Ducreux, Michel Aumont, Sabine Azéma, Geneviève Mnich, and Monique Chaumette. It explores family dynamics in a clan on the eve of World War I. The film was theatrically released in France on 11 April 1984, and was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or in the main competition section at the 37th Cannes Film Festival, where Tavernier was awarded Best Director. It received generally positive reviews from critics. The film won Best Actress for Azéma, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Cinematography from a total of eight nominations, including Best Film, at the 10th César Awards. It was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 42nd Golden Globe Awards and the 38th British Academy Film Awards. Plot The story takes place during a Sunday in the late summer of 1912. Monsieur Ladmiral is a painter without any real genius and in the twilight of his life. Since the death of his wife, he lives alone with Mercedes, his servant. As every Sunday, he invites Gonzague, his son, a steady young man, who likes order and propriety, accompanied by his wife, Marie-Thérèse and their three children, Emile, Lucien and Mireille. That day, Irène, Gonzague's sister, a young non-conformist, liberated and energetic woman, upsets this peaceful ritual and calls into question her father's artistic choices. Cast Louis Ducreux as Monsieur Ladmiral Michel Aumont as Gonzague Sabine Azéma as Irène Geneviève Mnich as Marie-Thérèse Monique Chaumette as Mercédès Thomas Duval as Emile Quentin Ogier as Lucien Katia Wostrikoff as Mireille Claude Winter as Madame Ladmiral Jean-Roger Milo as Fisherman (Le pêcheur) Pascale Vignal as A servant (La serveuse) Jacques Poitrenaud as Hector (Patron guinguette) Valentine Suard as Little girl (La petite fille 1) Erika Faivre as Little girl (La petite fille 2) Marc Perrone as Accordionist (L'accordéoniste) Reception Critical response On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 7 reviews, with an average rating of 8.4/10. Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote that "A Sunday in the Country is exquisite - purposefully and almost painfully so - from beginning to end" and stated it "is one of the director's very best films, acted as beautifully and thoughtfully as it