Character Relationship Map: Boxes

Characters

• Anna (played by Jane Birkin) — supporting

  Middle-aged protagonist struggling with a mid-life crisis. She lives in Brittany and reflects on her past marriages and three daughters through memories triggered by household possessions.

• Camille (played by Lou Doillon) — supporting

  Anna's second daughter and Fanny's half-sister. Her father is Max, who has passed away.

• Fanny (played by Natacha Régnier) — supporting

  One of Anna's three grown-up daughters. Born from Anna's first marriage, she barely knows her English father due to their failed union.

• Lilly (played by Adèle Exarchopoulos) — supporting

  Anna's third daughter, born to Anna and her third husband Jean, who abandoned the family to pursue extramarital affairs.

• Max (played by Maurice Bénichou) — supporting

  Anna's second husband and Camille's father, who is now deceased.

• Fanny's father (played by John Hurt) — supporting

  Anna's first husband, an Englishman whose marriage to Anna failed, leaving their daughter Fanny largely unfamiliar with him.

• Jean (played by Tchéky Karyo) — supporting

  Anna's third husband and Lilly's father, who left the family to pursue affairs.

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Fanny's father → Fanny (father)
• Jean → Lilly (Family Father) — Jean is Lilly's father.

  The plot states that Lilly was born to Anna and Jean.

• Max → Camille (Family Father) — Max is Camille's deceased father.

  The plot explicitly identifies Max as Camille's father and states that he is now dead.

• Anna → Jean (Family Former Spouse) — Jean was Anna's third husband and Lilly's father.

  The plot identifies Jean as Anna's third husband and states that they had Lilly together.

• Anna → Max (Family Former Spouse) — Max was Anna's second husband and Camille's father.

  The plot describes Max as Anna's second husband and states that Camille was born from their relationship.

• Fanny → Camille (Family Half-Sister) — Fanny and Camille are half-sisters through their shared mother, Anna.

  The plot explicitly describes Camille as Fanny's half-sister.

• Anna → Lilly (Family Mother) — Anna is Lilly's mother.

  The plot states that Anna had Lilly with her third husband, Jean.

• Anna → Camille (Family Mother) — Anna is Camille's mother.

  The plot states that Anna had Camille with Camille's father, Max.

• Anna → Fanny (Family Mother) — Anna is Fanny's mother, although Fanny's family history is marked by the failure of Anna's first marriage.

  The plot identifies Fanny as one of Anna's three grown-up daughters and states that Fanny was born from Anna's first marriage.

Story Analysis

A middle-aged woman confronts the emotional remains of her marriages, daughters, and family memories through the objects in her Brittany home.

Plot Progression

1. The House of Memory — Anna lives in a rambling home in Brittany while struggling with a mid-life crisis. Household possessions and photographs begin to awaken memories of childhood and adulthood.
2. Fanny's Broken Heritage — Anna's memories turn toward her first marriage and its connection to Fanny. The failed union leaves Fanny barely acquainted with her English father.
3. Camille and the Lost Father — Anna recalls her second marriage to Max and the daughter they had, Camille. Max's death adds loss to the family history Anna is revisiting.
4. Jean's Abandoned Family — Anna remembers her third marriage to Jean and the birth of Lilly. Jean's departure to pursue affairs exposes another painful rupture in Anna's past.
5. Living Among the Remnants — The memories of Anna's three marriages and daughters converge through the objects and photographs in the house. Her reflection remains centered on the emotional weight of the past.