In ‘Summer ‘36,’ what should have been a relaxing summer vacation for many turns into an unpleasant criminal investigation as a murder takes place in the renowned Hotel Riviera. August of 1936 marks the first time ever that the country’s working-class population receives paid vacation. As a result, the city becomes populated with a mix of tourists, including the factory-owning elites as well as the workers. Amidst this vacation, when Adrien Jaccquart ends up getting murdered, one family in particular enters Detective Raven’s suspicious radar. The eldest daughter of the Pontavice-Caron, Blanche, is suspected of being the prosecutor’s secret lover.
On the other hand, the estranged daughter, Eugenie, who married a factory worker and is now a union rep, was Adrien’s ex-fiancée. Naturally, this means even as the investigation is afoot, certain animosity remains between the two sisters. Yet, despite this familiar and class-conscious tension between the two, Blanche’s daughter, Angele, and Eugenie’s brother-in-law, Gabriel, end up in each other’s lovesick orbits. Yet, the fact of their drastically different backgrounds hangs like a dark cloud over their future. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Gabriel Books a Tour Gig, and Angele Jumps to Conclusions
Angele and Gabriel’s love story begins with serreptious glances stolen on beaches. In a twist of fate, they end up with a concrete reason to circle around each other as it is revealed that the latter’s sister-in-law is also the former’s aunt. Eugenie has been estranged from her family for almost 17 years, ever since she broke off her engagement with Adrien to marry Jean, a factory worker from her father’s company. Despite their unpleasant history, the family’s patriarch, Henri, who is looking for an heir to take over the family business, wants to reconnect with his daughter and, specifically, his grandson, Louie. As such, the Berthier family, which includes Jean’s brother, Gabriel, ends up crossing paths with Blanche and the Acquermans often. This paves the way for Angele and Gabriel to meet and form a proper connection.
Afterward, once Blanche is arrested on suspicion of Adrien’s murder, it creates monumental friction in the family. Angele grows to detest her mother for her selfish extramarital affair, as well as the fact that her father, Edouard, falsely confesses to the crime in an effort to save his cheating wife. For the same reason, the 16-year-old ends up moving out of the Hotel Riviera and crashing at her aunt’s place in Mina’s Boarding House. During this time, her relationship with Gabriel deepens as the two continue to get to know each other better. Initially, Jean and Eugenie are skeptical of this relationship, largely due to the fact that Angele is still so young. Nonetheless, neither she nor Gabriel is deterred by the doubts of their respective families. That is, until that young man receives an offer of a lifetime.
Born into a laborer’s family, Gabriel has worked in the factory for most of his life. However, his true passion lies in music and dance. During the vacation in Nice, he and Angele participate in various dancing events, including one that gets him on the radar of a known musician, Jo Simone. The latter ends up offering Gabriel a spot on his upcoming tour as a part of the dancer’s entourage. Although the young man is excited for the opportunity, his brother remains skeptical of the affair and encourages him to stick to the factory. As a result, a frustrated Gabriel storms away, insisting that he’ll chase his dreams. Unfortunately, when Angele fails to find him in the aftermath, Jean assumes that his brother has ditched the young girl and tells her the same. Consequently, the young lovers’ romance hits a precarious wall.
Gabriel Saves Angele’s Life and Promises to Stick by Her Side
Once Angele learns about the touring opportunity, Jean’s comments about Gabriel compel her to believe that her boyfriend has abandoned her. Around the same time, several other complications have arisen in her life. Even though both her parents have been acquitted as potential suspects, her father, Eduourd, wants the family to move to America at once. Thus, the prospect of leaving the only life she knows behind, on the heels of finding what she thought was her true love, becomes too overwhelming for the young girl. As a result, she ends up resorting to extreme measures. In an effort to drown out her sorrows, Angele walks into the ocean, attempting to commit suicide. Around the same time, Gabriel, who never left town, begins looking for her.
Fortunately, others are able to spot her on the populated beach, bringing Gabriel’s attention to her. As the young man dives after his lover, he swims off the deep end and manages to retrieve Angele’s drowning form. In the aftermath, he and Edourd manage to administer CPR and save the young girl’s life. Thus, the couple is able to work through their miscommunication. Angele learns that Gabriel was never planning on leaving her behind, no matter how exceptional the touring offer had been. Afterward, once he learns about her family’s plan to move to America, in order to flee Hitler’s invasion and the growing Jewish persecution in France, he makes a decision of his own. Instead of staying behind at the factory or touring with Jo Simone, Gabriel chooses to move to America so that he and Angele can truly be together forever.
Read More: Is Summer ’36 Based on a True Story?
