Live Life Team
To be very honest I wasn’t expecting anything when I went to watch ‘I’ve Loved You So Long’. After a string of other bad movies, I was in no mood for a directorial debut.
But I was so wrong. Philippe Claudel’s directorial debut is a must-watch. Starring Kristin Scott Thomas as Juliette the woman who is imprisoned after murdering her six-year old and Elsa Zylberstein as Lea, Juliette’s younger (by fifteen years) sister; the movie explores a layer of emotions and is beautifully crafted.
On Juliette’s release from prison, Lea invites her to stay with her family – husband Luc (Serge Hazanavicius) and their two adopted Vietnamese daughters. Juliette comes across as cold and almost anti-social but in reality, she’s just getting used to a life she doesn’t know. But slowly, she opens up and her character develops.
The plot is revealed little by little and there is always that impending question that no one seems to want to really talk about in too much detail. Angry and unforgiving Luc brings it up and so does Juliette but no details are ever revealed. Lea chooses to ignore it as much as possible.
It all builds up to a climactic emotional outburst between the two sisters, which answers the all-important question. I’m not going to say anymore or I’ll just end up spoiling the movie for you. Frankly, this scene is a little disappointing especially considering the acting is brilliant and the direction even better, for the rest of the movie.
With that said, I’d say go and watch the movie. It adds complexity to a simple plot and explores relationships and emotions beautifully.
