Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
At the age of 51 and after 20 months on unemployment, Thierry starts a new job that soon brings him face to face with a moral dilemma. How much is he willing to accept to keep his job?
Vincent Lindon delivers a masterful, naturalistic performance that anchors this quiet social-realist drama, earning him the Best Actor prize at Cannes. The film's observational, almost documentary style traces the quiet indignities of unemployment and precarious work with restraint and authenticity. While the moral dilemma at the heart of the story is compelling, the narrative itself is deliberately understated and familiar within the French social-realist tradition. Cinematography is functional and handheld but not especially distinctive. The ending is elliptical and true to life without being dramatically resonant. Lindon's performance is the singular reason to see it.