Damien, a Chinese civilization professor, lives with his wife, Iva, a stage director, and their son Noé. The couple's relationship has drifted into routine that has drained it of love. Damien finds himself trapped one day by Iva, who orders him to ask his father, a senior member of the French Council of State, for help in preventing Zorica, a woman Iva knows, from being deported. But Damien and his father don't get on and are barely ever in touch with each other. This dangerous mission throws Damien into a spiral that will turn his life upside down.
Acting
Bacri's magnificent discomfort—every sigh is a tiny masterpiece.
Writing
Bonitzer's surgical dialogue cuts through French upper-middle-class pretension.
Director
Pascal Bonitzer
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Bonitzer belongs to the 'Rivette school'—this film's theatrical spaces (apartments, offices, courthouses) function as stages where characters perform intimacy they've forgotten how to actually feel.
Kristin Scott Thomas filmed this during her French cinema renaissance period—she and Bacri had previously played divorced couple in 'Didier' (1997), making their eroded marriage here feel like a grim alternate timeline.
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