A Christmas Tale () is a 2008 French comedy-drama film by Arnaud Desplechin, starring Catherine Deneuve, Jean-Paul Roussillon, Mathieu Amalric, Anne Consigny, Melvil Poupaud, Emmanuelle Devos and Chiara Mastroianni. It tells the story of a family with strained relationships which gathers at the parents' home for Christmas, only to learn that their mother has leukemia. It was in competition for the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. Plot Roubaix, December 2006. Junon Vuillard, married to Abel, is the iron-willed matriarch of the family. Junon held her family together through tough times, but her willpower made her children resentful. Junon remains handsome, and though her husband, who owns a small factory, is obese and elderly, he retains clarity, acceptance, tolerance, and unconditional love for his family. He and their mutual love holds a fragmented family together, albeit uneasily. They have three children in their 30s. Eldest is Elizabeth, a successful playwright and married to the equally successful Claude. Their only child is 16-year-old Paul, mentally ill and taking powerful medication. The middle child is Henri, who drinks too much and has always fought with everyone else. He has a new girlfriend, Faunia. Ivan is their youngest, married to Sylvia with two sons, Basile and Baptiste. Henri and Ivan are friends with Simon, their cousin raised with them after his parents' death. Simon works in Abel's plant, but is a part-time painter. He is an alcoholic, frequently in trouble for public brawling. All three men were interested in Sylvia once, but manipulated her to think that only Ivan loved her; she married and grew to love him. Junon’s other son, Joseph, is the presence around which everyone's psyches revolve: he died of leukemia when six, despite trying to save him by having another child who could be a bone marrow donor. It may be that the part of siblings' poor relationship is the mutual resentment for not saving his life. Six years before the Christmas gathering of the film, Henri faced bankruptcy. Elizabeth paid off his debts, but demanded that he never see her again, meaning he was excluded from family gatherings. Family members speculate on the reason for this condition, including perhaps incest between them. Just before Christmas, Junon learns she has acute myeloid leukemia and will soon die, unless she has a bone marrow transplant. Her family gathers at her home and immediately start bickering. Junon asks them