You may read the movie's official site's outline and the IMDb storyline/summary but you will never get a feel for what this motion picture is really about until you view it for yourself. The storyline is merely the backdrop to what is actually happening. French audiences are use to the kind of scenario and the subtle direction method of a Lucas Belvaux this movie clearly is stamped with, American audiences not as much. That does not mean American (North American that is) audiences won't 'get it' but it does imply many of you reading this review may be disappointed by the movie if what you were hoping to watch was another kidnapping for ransom movie, as advertised; that, it simply is not.
In my opinion, the film is a work of art in the way the characters are brought to the audience, one thin layer at the time; there are many layers peeled away during the kidnapping for ransom in progress. Like the movie "Proof of Life", the story takes place over a long period of time, compared to most all other ransom movies; that is the first of many elements that make the picture feel so real. In order to achieve its goal, the real drama experienced by the key characters, the pace has to be slow at times so we can focus on the players. I could swear the director has studied magic; who knows, I did not bother to check.
The movie ends most abruptly if you are not peeking at your watch. I felt short-changed for a minute after the movie ended before I realized the point of the movie was not at all what I had fooled myself in believing. Yes, it's true, many French movies, like this one, dare to make you think even after the movie is over. What you get is not what you see but what you look for. A celebrated French author wrote long ago "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away", and this movie says a whole lot with, relatively speaking, very little fanfare.
At the end of the movie, I cursed it for a few seconds, then, rewinding it at warp speed in my mind, played it back in much the same manner over a nice cup of coffee; I concluded it was brilliant. Yvan Attal delivers, as usual, a flawless performance; it is not easy to capture both the sympathy and contempt of the viewer in the same movie, but he did here. What few action scenes are needed for the kidnapping story to unfold, the movie did not quibble and delivered. The way the movie ends will have you conjuring up several more scenes to suit your idea of what should have been the better ending, but there isn't a better more purposeful ending; that sort of thing reminded me of a style more popular in French movies of a few generations ago, but it is still effective today. Enough said; you know by now if it is the kind of movie for you.
In my opinion, the film is a work of art in the way the characters are brought to the audience, one thin layer at the time; there are many layers peeled away during the kidnapping for ransom in progress. Like the movie "Proof of Life", the story takes place over a long period of time, compared to most all other ransom movies; that is the first of many elements that make the picture feel so real. In order to achieve its goal, the real drama experienced by the key characters, the pace has to be slow at times so we can focus on the players. I could swear the director has studied magic; who knows, I did not bother to check.
The movie ends most abruptly if you are not peeking at your watch. I felt short-changed for a minute after the movie ended before I realized the point of the movie was not at all what I had fooled myself in believing. Yes, it's true, many French movies, like this one, dare to make you think even after the movie is over. What you get is not what you see but what you look for. A celebrated French author wrote long ago "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away", and this movie says a whole lot with, relatively speaking, very little fanfare.
At the end of the movie, I cursed it for a few seconds, then, rewinding it at warp speed in my mind, played it back in much the same manner over a nice cup of coffee; I concluded it was brilliant. Yvan Attal delivers, as usual, a flawless performance; it is not easy to capture both the sympathy and contempt of the viewer in the same movie, but he did here. What few action scenes are needed for the kidnapping story to unfold, the movie did not quibble and delivered. The way the movie ends will have you conjuring up several more scenes to suit your idea of what should have been the better ending, but there isn't a better more purposeful ending; that sort of thing reminded me of a style more popular in French movies of a few generations ago, but it is still effective today. Enough said; you know by now if it is the kind of movie for you.