I've Loved You So Long Film Review
Performances make Phillipe Claudel's New Film Worth Renting.
Apr 2, 2009
I've Loved You So Long Synopsis
When University professor and mother of two Lea ( Elsa Zylberstein) brings her estranged sister Juliette (Kristin Scott-Thomas) home there is a great deal of tension surrounding where she has been for the past thirteen years. Lea however is desperate to reconnect with Juliette, who she had been forced to forget by her parents when (one assumes) she was convicted of some horrible crime.
Juliette doesn’t make it easy for people to sympathize with her. She barely speaks and seems perpetually on the verge of releasing a torrent of inner rage. Yet there is a sweet melancholy in her demeanor that gives the impression that she has suffered greatly.
It is revealed when Juliette visits her probation officer that where she has been is in prison. And the length of her sentence indicates that she was not a mere petty shoplifter. Lea’s husband Luc is reluctant to have her in the house, and no one will give her a job after hearing what she has done. However, perhaps out of guilt that she used to tell people she was an only child, or on the basis of the sisterly bond they shared as children, Lea is determined to connect with her, and to find out why she committed such a horrendous crime.
I've Loved You So Long Analysis
With the main demographic of movies being men under twenty-five it is rare that a film with a strong female narrative receives any main stream attention. This interest is largely due to Kristin Scott Thomas’s gut wrenching performance, and the fact that she performs with such natural ease in a language that is not her first (French). Though she has justifiably garnered a lot of praise for the role it is Zylberstein’s subtle elegance as doting sister Lea who really steals the screen.
The subject matter is nicely dealt with, and it is the quiet moments between the two sisters that make I’ve Loved you So Long worth watching. Unfortunately there is no real story arc, and many scenes do little to advance character or story. In the middle of the film, for example, Lea and Luc take Juliette to a country house with a group of their intellectual friends. And though it serves to demonstrate Juliette’s isolation, comical shots of children pouring water on a sleeping man, and a prolonged dinner scene tell the audience little about Juliette and Lea’s relationship, which is by far the most interesting aspect of the film.
Despite not completely knowing where it is going I’ve Loved You So Long is a masterwork in character study, and the two sisters are able to captivate their audience from the opening shot of Juliette slumped in an airport waiting room, to the fierce argument that ensues when Lea discovers Juliette’s secret. Scott Thomas and Zylberstain turn what could have been a bland drama into a poignant look at the bond between sisters.
