This is a movie most of you probably haven't heard of. It's French, so made and so written. And it's a bit of an arty film about two sisters who are reunited after 15 years.
And it's excellent. They marketed this film brilliantly:
That is the face of Kristin Scott Thomas. She is wonderful in basically every way. There is not, to my knowledge, a more elegant, beautiful, and supremely talented actress alive--she sells the film better than anything else could have.
I don't want to give too much of the plot away, because it's much better unraveled slowly, carefully, with the artistic precision intended by the filmmakers. It is a story about immense pain and suffering that took place in the past--outside of the frame. But the past events, even cloaked in mystery for so much of the film, provide a profoundly dynamic and compelling foundation for everything that happens within the story we see.
The acting was all-around incredible. There wasn't a weak spot in the cast. But, of course, Thomas steals the show with the impenetrable depth behind her eyes. You may never have seen anyone communicate so much with so little expression. Her performance is understated to a degree that is extremely rare in today's Oscar-grabbing climate.
In order to truly impress me, however, a film must display humanity with grace and power. That means believable, redeemable characters. I have little patience for "bad guys" in films. I understand their utility in melodrama, but the truth is that most of us don't know many truly bad people. And no one in this film is bad. Some of them are weak, but only sometimes. Some of them are wrong, but not always. There's intolerance, but only temporarily. Most of all, there is love, in abundance and in all shades. And the love carries the story and the characters. By the end, the message is clear: Terrible tragedies visit the best of us, and it is only love and compassion of others that can help us through. We need other people, and sometimes desperately.
Holy cow. You're an incredible writer. I admire you Jordan Petersen. I almost shed a tear reading that description. You have a gift my dear, a gift for writing and even more so a gift for reading people's souls.
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