“This unfinished masterpiece, with all the revelation and freshness of touch of a sketch by a great painter, was shot in 1936 but never completed. It was eventually edited and released as a short feature in 1946. The atmosphere and fashions are those of 1880, the period when the banks of the Seine were frequented by Impressionist painters and naturalist authors, both of whom were capturing aspects of contemporary life. Pictorially, it reveals Renoir's relationships not only to his father, Auguste Renoir, but also to Manet, Monet, Degas, and other Impressionists. Its theme derives as much from Zola as from Maupassant. This endearing, romantic film has nonetheless a heart of sadness in its meditation on solitude and the difficulties of human relationships.” --Georges Sadoul, “Dictionary of Films”