Amour

Genre: psychological drama

With: Jean-Louis Trintignant (Georges), Emmanuelle Riva (Anne), Isabelle Huppert (Éva), Alexandre Tharaud (Alexandre, the pianist), William Shimell (Geoff), Ramón Agirre (Méry), Rita Blanco (Mrs. Méry)

Director: Michael Haneke

Screenplay: Michael Haneke

Release: 2012

Studio: Les Films du Losange, X-Filme Creative Pool, Wega Film et al.

Rating: PG-13

MBiS score: 8.7/10 

 

‟I don't remember the film either. But I remember the feeling.” 

 

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Story-line: responding to an emergency, firemen use a battering ram to enter the apartment of an elderly Parisian couple, Anne and Georges Laurent. In the bedroom, they find Anne’s body on the bed, lifeless and surrounded by flowers. Michael Haneke’s film reveals the circumstances behind this sad event.

Pluses: treasurable acting by Emmanuelle Riva (1927-2017) and Jean-Louis Trintignant (1930-2022), fine support from Isabelle Huppert as their sometimes disapproving daughter, professional direction, an honest and unflinching screenplay, top-flight cinematography, modest production values.

Minuses: due to its subject matter, the movie’s pacing is deliberate but, more importantly, it truly reflects the cadence of old age. Story-wise, AMOUR doesn’t lose any interest by revealing its outcome very early; from my point of view, this makes the ending even more startling and powerful.

Comments: the closed-in and touching AMOUR describes the increasingly difficult life of two old souls fighting against illness while their relationship hangs by a thread and their daughter despairs. This Palme d’or winner from 2012 is very enlightening as it shows how little we matter in the grand scheme of things and how much patience, courage and love is required during a family crisis. It also displays, for posterity, the exceptional talents of Emmanuelle Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant in one of their last appearances on screen. (By the way, Jean-Louis Trintignant also played a man named Georges Laurent in HAPPY END (2017), another Haneke film starring Isabelle Huppert.) 

 

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