One Sings, the Other Doesn’t (1977) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The film spans multiple locations beginning in 1960s Paris, where Pauline and Suzanne first meet at an art gallery. The story then travels to Hyères where Suzanne eventually runs a family planning clinic, Bobigny which hosts the pivotal 1972 abortion rights demonstration, Amsterdam where Pauline builds her music career, and Iran where she marries Darius. Each location represents a different stage in the women's personal and political evolution.

• paris
• hyères
• bobigny
• amsterdam
• iran
• setting
• locations

The movie begins in 1962 Paris and extends through the 1970s, tracking over a decade of the women's lives. The 1960s scenes capture Paris's artistic ferment and the quiet onset of feminist consciousness, while the 1970s content foregrounds the abortion rights movement, culminating in the real 1972 Bobigny demonstration that became a landmark event for reproductive rights in France.

• 1962
• 1960s
• 1970s
• time period
• historical context
• bobigny demonstration

The film centers on women's reproductive autonomy and bodily choice as core feminist concerns. It depicts how personal decisions, like Suzanne seeking an illegal abortion, connect to broader public action, exemplified by the Bobigny demonstration that marked a turning point for abortion rights in France. The narrative traces the growth of feminist consciousness across decades through the protagonists' activism and personal reinventions.

• feminism
• abortion rights
• reproductive choice
• bobigny
• women's autonomy
• activism

Pauline, nicknamed Pomme, is a 17-year-old Parisian who meets Suzanne at a gallery and becomes her close friend. She funds Suzanne's illegal abortion, leaves her family, and eventually becomes a singer in a feminist folk group. She travels to Amsterdam and Iran, marries a grad student named Darius, and maintains her enduring bond with Suzanne throughout, using music as a form of political expression and personal liberation.

• pauline pomme
• singer
• activist
• music
• amsterdam
• iran
• character journey

Suzanne is a 22-year-old mother of two when the film begins, raising her children with partner Jérôme while facing social stigma for illegitimacy. She teaches herself typing to build independence and eventually runs a family planning clinic in Hyères. Her resilience, resourcefulness, and care for other women define her role as she becomes a pillar of practical support within her community.

• suzanne
• mother
• family planning clinic
• hyères
• resilience
• community worker

The enduring friendship between Pauline and Suzanne serves as the film's emotional core, surviving distance, misfortune, and ideological shifts over more than a decade. Their bond enables risky personal choices, from illegal abortion to clinic leadership, and functions as a quiet engine for social change. Through mutual support, both women navigate love, motherhood, work, and political awakening together.

• friendship
• female solidarity
• pauline
• suzanne
• bond
• support

Pauline's evolution into a singer with a feminist folk group transforms music into a vehicle for political expression. Her performances give voice to women's experiences and connect intimate personal stories to collective action. Music carries the narrative between moments of personal triumph and public activism, turning artistic expression into a form of feminist advocacy.

• music
• singing
• feminist folk group
• art as politics
• voice
• performance

Jérôme is Suzanne's partner and the father of her two children. His eventual suicide becomes a pivotal, painful moment in the film, exposing the emotional cost that social pressures place on personal relationships. His death underscores the fragility of individuals navigating the same societal constraints that the women are actively challenging.

• jérôme
• suicide
• photographer
• consequence
• social pressure

Darius is a grad student whom Pauline meets in Amsterdam during her travels. They marry in Iran, navigating cultural distances and the challenges of cross-cultural marriage. The relationship faces strains that ultimately lead to Pauline returning to France with their child, though their connection continues to weave through the story across borders.

• darius
• iran
• amsterdam
• marriage
• cross-cultural
• pauline's partner

The 1972 Bobigny demonstration depicted in the film was a real historical event, a landmark trial and protest for abortion rights in France. The film integrates this event as a turning point that connects the characters' personal struggles to the broader feminist movement, showing how individual choices about women's bodies became public acts of resistance.

• bobigny
• abortion rights
• demonstration
• 1972
• historical event
• france

The film maintains a hopeful tone despite tackling serious issues like illegal abortion and suicide, balanced with long stretches of character growth and positive connection. The ending is bittersweet, the women reunite with their families representing a triumph of their bond, but their paths have involved significant sacrifices including Pomme losing custody of her son. The narrative consistently emphasizes the protagonists' agency and resilience.

• tone
• hopeful
• bittersweet
• emotional
• resilience
• agency
• ending feel