FilmSnobReviews

Title: France
MPAA Rating: Unrated
Director: Bruno Dumont
Starring: Léa Seydoux, Blanche Gardin, Benjamin Biolay
Runtime: 2 hrs 13 mins

What It Is: Television personality France de Meurs (Seydoux) is one of the most well-known people in all of France. Her late-night show is a firebrand of both political issues and controversy. When she accidentally hits a young man named Baptiste (Jawad Zemmar) causing him a violent injury she is changed. Gone is the self-assured woman stuck in a dead-end marriage. One who does whatever she can to get ahead. Juggling both a busy professional life and an understated personal life it seems she’s been pushed to the edge.

What We Think: Léa Seydoux is refreshingly honest and wonderful here. It needs to be said that this role is a great one but it’s far from easy. Her easy confidence as France makes it seems like such a role could be accomplished by anyone. Bruno Dumont manages to wrangle this story so well. There’s something to be said for a good ole fashioned send-up. In America, we had Don’t Look Up. Two very different films in delivery. Whereas the American satire works because our country is something to truly behold right now the French equivalent works because even though we aren’t there we understand what these jokes are. Why they’re funny.

Our Grade: B-, This is a good but not truly great display from Dumont. Léa Sedoux is the whole reason to watch this film. She’s subtle and really works the deep corners of this complex character. In a film so full of satire it’s easy to overdo it and chew every piece of the scenery around. There’s a restraint to something like this that only a really talented actress (like Seydoux) can pull off. A complex, relevant satire worth your time. See it.