Reviewed by Richard Lee Zuras

Released Sep. 16, 2009

2 hr. 10 min.

Cedric Klapisch/Studio Canal

Juliette Binoche

Romain Duris

Francois Cluzet

Karen Viard

Fabrice Luchini

Albert Dupontel

Juliette Binoche is that rare actress that knows no country. This is not to say that she is not beloved in France. She is. And this is not to say that she does not feel at home in a film wherein she speaks her native tongue. She does. But Juliette is so graceful in her screen persona, and so gifted (please don’t refer to her as the french Julia Roberts unless you are willing to compare their work over the last half dozen years–in which case you’ll find that this comparison has unwittingly disparaged Madame Binoche) that her movies are inhabited by her.

This film is a troupe film, and many of the actors shine. But Juliette is so good at what she does, you might become annoyed waiting for the story to find its way back to her. And this is the key to watching this film–the discovery of foreign screen stars you would not have known were it not for said entry point. Thank you, again, Madame Binoche.

The first discovery you will make is in the performance by a man named Romain Duris, who plays Juliette’s ailing brother. And you will make many more, as director Klapisch weaves a tale of strangers and friends and families that could only be told in a foreign film. You may find no patience to watch this film. Its sensibilities are not in line with traditional american cinema.

However…it is set in Paris. It is beautifully shot (did I mention it is set in Paris?), and there are very real time periods when lives are unfolding in front of you, in real time, and you forget you are at the movies. People find love. Lose love. People meet or do not. People die or might. And you are absorbed…

Or you are not. This is, regardless of Binoche’s world-wide appeal (yes, even in America: Chocolat, The English Patient, Dan in Real Life, Bee Season), a non-closed film. There is no domino plot. There are no jerky camera movements. No list of known stars. The film doesn’t tell you how to interpret every scene, every character, every decision.

And yet Ebert gives this 3 and a half stars out of four and I am giving it four out of five.

Beg your curiosity? Or not.

I saw a film this summer about the historical role of the movie critic entitled For The Love Of Movies. Of great, great interest to me was the notion that, based on the work of critics, film-goers–get this–actually avoided bad films (2 out of 4 stars and below) and sought out those highly reviewed. That power is long gone. In fact…I believe the opposite formula is utilized wherein the worst films are sought out. Or maybe it is simply the rash of marketing dollars spent on the broad (read as weak) films that herd us into the theaters.

Anyway, we critics are still trying.

Bottom line 4.0/5.0