Rebecca Zlotowski's “A Private Life” was the second-last film I saw at MIFF this year, which was a very deliberate choice on my part, because I wanted to go out with films that were lighter and more fun than is usual for the festival, which often lean towards more heavy and dramatic fare. It was such a good choice, as I absolutely loved this light murder-mystery thriller. It was so much fun, but nothing that you would take too seriously, and it has a fantastic performance from Jodie Foster in her first leading role in a French language film.
Foster plays Liliane, a psychiatrist who is just as neurotic as most of her patients. When she finds out that one of her patients, Paula, has recently died via suicide, she is sure that there is something else going on, and even suspects murder, because she never noticed any suicidal thoughts from Paula in any of their regular sessions together. Like all good mystery films, Liliane starts to search for clues herself, looking for motives and suspects to a crime that may or may not have been committed. Along the way, she gets her ex-husband Gabriel mixed up in the investigation, but he seems to be using this as just an excuse to be close to Liliane once again. When her office is torn apart and some of her recorded sessions have been stolen, Liliane is sure she is closing in on the killer, but is it the other way around?
“A Private Life” is a fun, and frothy thriller that has all the necessary ingredients to make it an enjoyable and suspenseful ride for the audience. It is not particularly intense, nor scary but I personally thought that Zlotowski handled the suspense elements really well, to the point that at times the film felt Hitchcockian in places. To be honest, I really wasn't expected too much from “A Private Life” but I was pleasantly surprised by just how much fun I had with it, and how well everything worked in the film, particularly the mystery itself which wraps up perfectly and isn't at all convoluted in it's resolution. It all comes together really well, and doesn't feel overly thought out, or elements were added just to trip up clever viewers trying to get ahead of the film and work it all out.
As I mentioned above, Jodie Foster is fantastic in the lead role of Liliane, and proves that she is just as good at performing in French as she is in English. It has been well-known that Foster is fluent in French for the majority of her life, and whilst she has had smaller roles in French films before (like Jean-Pierre Jeunet's “A Very Long Engagement” from 2004), this is the first time she has had to carry a French film, but she does it with aplomb. Being that her character is an American living in Paris, I also loved that she would regularly drop into English from time to time, especially when she was frustrated and swearing. That said, you can tell that she understands the French language and knows exactly what she is saying, because of the way she also emotes whilst speaking the language. One of the (small) problems I had with Richard Linklater's very fun movie “Nouvelle Vague” was in Zooey Dutch's performance as Jean Seberg, as I never believed she had any real control over the French language, and it felt like she may have learned it phonetically. (I have no idea if this is true or not, but it is how I felt, but Seberg herself was British, so maybe it was deliberate, but I always felt like Dutch was struggling with the French dialogue; it never came out of her mouth naturally.) With Foster, if you had never seen her in another movie before, you would just assume she was a native French speaker. She also has such wonderful chemistry with Daniel Auteuil who plays her ex-husband Gabriel. There was a time when Daniel Auteuil seemed to be in every French film that came out, at least the ones that made it to Australia, but it has actually been a very long while since I had seen him in anything, and “A Private Life” reminded me just how great an actor he really is. His chemistry with Foster feels effortless, and you can feel a warmth and love between the two of them. Auteuil also imbues Gabriel with a fun and goofy energy; you can tell the man is having a ball investigating this murder with his ex. Two other cast members of note are Virginie Efira, who plays the deceased Paula, and is seen in flashbacks, and Mathieu Amalric who plays Paula's grieving husband (and perhaps her killer) Simon. Amalric is excellent playing the dark and shady character, giving audiences enough to suspect him of killing his wife, whilst Efira has little to do, but gives this thriller a layer of class and sexiness to it.
The film has been gorgeously shot by cinematographer George Lechaptois who gives “A Private Life” a glossy look, and who exploits the usual visual cues that work so well in thrillers such as mirrors, staircases, the rain, windows, etc. It is through Lechaptois's camera work that the Hitchcock vibe is truly felt, particularly late in the film, as he is able to create palpably suspense through his moody visuals. It is such a classy looking film.
Probably my favourite thing about “A Private Life” though is the story itself, which isn't too heavy or takes itself too seriously, but serious enough so you feel the suspense of the situation and fear for the characters involved. As I mentioned earlier, I particularly loved the way the story wraps up because it all works and is believable. It is not one of those films where if you look at it later and go through certain details, that you realise that the story makes no sense and characters couldn't do or wouldn't do certain things we have been told they have done. “A Private Life” works perfectly, makes sense and for me, is a very satisfying ending to a great and fun mystery thriller. At the end of the day, the film is about listening, really listening, to one another to hear what they are trying to tell you.
The only negative that I have with the film, isn't really a negative per se, rather it is a moment that I found more odd than anything. Hypnosis plays a role in the film, and through one of these hypnosis sessions, Liliane explores one of her past lives, where she is a member of an orchestra which Paula, in one of her past lives, is also a part of. During their performance, which is clearly taking place during WWII, the Nazi's interrupt the performance killing Paula in the process, but the strangest part is that the Head Nazi is Liliane's son(?). It is such a weird moment and probably the only moment that does not work in “A Private Life”. It hints at a queer element in the film, and then just as quickly, discards the idea.
Overall, I had such a fun time with Rebecca Zlotowski's “A Private Life”, which exceeded my expectations. It is a playful and clever murder-mystery, that doesn't ask to be taken seriously, filled with wonderful performances from the whole cast, and which comes together for a very satisfying conclusion. It was the perfect film to see towards the end of MIFF and I actually look forward to watching it again sometime soon.
3.5 Stars.
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