Impending death is commonly an opportunity to cleanse or the catalyst to fight. In A Time to Leave, Romain (Melville Poupard) chooses to run towards death at full tilt, cleansing himself of all that is emotionally complex or physically involved. With the exception of his grandmother (Jeanne Moreau), Romain tells no one of his terminal condition and spends the first half of the film attempting to provoke a response from those around him, resulting in more hurt and pain. His grandmother is his solace, as she is one who is 'also close to death'. However, she appears to be valiantly resisting her chance to "slip away", armed with a nightly ritual of vitamins and begs Romain to consider chemotherapy.

As a fashion photographer, Romain has dealt in ethereal, superficial and transient images and his relationships have moved so far away from the truth that it is as if with distain that Romain discards them, following his diagnosis. There is a sense this is a journey he must undertake by himself. Romain appears haunted by the loss of the simplicity of his childhood and much of the movie focuses on his attempts to recapture this. When an offer to father a child surfaces, Romain moves through the natural stages of mourning to come to an acceptance of the cycle of life.

A gorgeous, moving tale of how an individual can choose to cope with death and seek reconciliation.