FAMILY REDEMPTION

French films are a peculiar breed of cinema and I have a hit-and-miss record as to my reaction to them. Some I've found to be utterly useless: such as Amelie, the 2001 Audrey Tautou fluff piece about a young woman possessed of a relentlessly saccharine need to be cheerful and helpful (I know, I sound harsh, but watch it and most readers will agree with me). Innocence (2004) is another Franco-flop in my estimation, about a surreal school for young ladies where they are forced to learn dance (it's really much stranger than it sounds).

There have been some French triumphs, though, to offset the offal. The Chorus (2004), a historical drama reminiscent of Mr. Holland's Opus, is exceptionally moving and features an incredible soundtrack featuring a superb boys' choir. When the Sea Rises (2005) is an archetypal foreign film in that it features a very quirky duo--Irene, a peripatetic puppeteer, and Dries, a loveable vagabond--and their offbeat adventures throughout northern Gallic vistas. Incidentally, all four of these films are available at the Main Library on DVD.

My review concerns the movie I've Loved You So Long, which was released in 2008, written and directed by Philippe Claudel. Juliette Fontaine (Kristin Scott Thomas, whose admirable command of French was a facet of her talent about which I'd been ignorant before this project) has been imprisoned for a decade and a half and is being released on parole. Her crime is something I will keep to myself, because it constitutes the best part of what makes the film memorable.

Her younger sister, Lea (Elsa Zylberstein), collects her from the penitentiary; Lea is much younger then Juliette, who had been a physician before her incarceration. Lea is married to Luc; the couple have two very young adopted daughters. It is clear Luc is displeased with Juliette's arrival into their household and treats his newly-met sister-in-law with overt distrust.

Juliette gradually moves from wooden, barely-registering presence to human, engaging interaction as Luc overcomes his reservations and she is introduced to a colleague of her sister's (who is, like Lea herself, a university professor) whose kindness and gentle nature eventually disgorge Juliette from her shell.

Scott Thomas' command of this character and the carefully measured means by which the audience learns of the circumstances which brought about her imprisonment (and how she adapts to life outside prison walls) are nothing short of brilliant. The film moves slowly but the inexorably mysterious backstory of the protagonist helped retain interest.

When we finally learn the full history of Dr. Fontaine, the entire plot is turned on its head. Juliette seems to have found a path, with the redemptive power of her family (she develops a touching materteral relationship with her elder niece, Petit-Lys) and a cautious sense of hope, to inner peace. And if I can say that sincerely, it's my opinion that I've Loved So Long is worthy of viewing. (I've Loved You So Long is available on DVD from the Main Library.)