Oh, man, oh, woman, this one shook! 2016 for me. 

It’s got the damn best casting ever, Vincent Cassel is ENORMOUS, Marion Cotillard is huge, hell, even Lea Seydoux is super solid. Main character Gaspard Ulliel is perfect, perfect sensibility, softness, eyes, tone, mystery, death. 

All these to say that Xavier Dolan just upped his game tremendously. Bravo! 

- Because it’s actually about the characters that these great actors inhabit, which are written with perfect craft. 

- Because #2 it’s FAMILY which is the greatest source of conflict since forever. I’ve said that for Sieranevada as well (which didn’t deliver in intensity and story gratification as this one does / delivered in form)

It’s got exceptionally creative mise-en-scene and editing. It has great scene rhythm, great accelerations and full-stops, a lot of wow non-verbal communication (THE MOMENT when Cotillard’s character realises that there’s something awfully bad that Ulliel’s character hides, expressed only through a delicate game of regards, pfuuauaaaia!)

It’s got the theme - the unspoken things, the hidden pain, the heart in conflict with itself, the hurt that lies in plain sight inside a family. It’s tender, it’s about love.

It’s got the trademark Dolan stylisation refined to a jewel, Dragostea din Tei included! It’s beautifully colour coded. It’s shot on film, rich contrasts, saturated colours.

It twists the values charged in the characters from beat to beat. They’re high, they fight in 1 minute, they’re low, they switch partners, they repeat. You can’t breath! 

It’s got the most gripping climactic scene in I don’t know when. 

CRAFT. FILMMAKING IS CRAFT.

Exceptional filmmaking is transcendent. 

I’m getting metaphysical about this soon. Over and out. See it now. 
Juste la fin du monde.