Clouds of Sils Maria

What stands out even more than the assured direction is Assayas' formidable screenplay, a challenging hybrid of complex characters and engaging interpersonal relationships. But the characters remain too encased in their worlds to allow for much in the way of emotional investment. Despite my reservation, there's a lot to admire here.

The heart of the film, an exploration on aging and self perception (particularly in women), is interesting to me and I found the layered nature of the discussions works well for exploring these ideas, and the setting allows for certain interactions that wouldn't be possible otherwise, with good back and forth dialogue and characters that are sympathetic but never emotionally charged so one can focus on the ideas and let the story flow as it will. Binoche stands out, Moretz too, Stewart is fine.

I love the way Assayas uses jump cuts to build momentum, especially on the train. Further, the report between the two leads is excellent. Binoche transforms through the course of the film, and brings a sense of increasing frailty to her role. And Stewart is something of a revelation. She successfully walks the fine line between seeming controlling and controlled. Assayas brings all of this together into an excellent meditation on aging, relationships, and accepting change.

There's a lot going on here including an excellent performance from Kristen Stewart. There's a lot of tension derived from not knowing when a character is reciting her lines from the play or from "real life". And it took a while to absorb the ending and finally realize this is about aging and the perpetual manipulation that goes on between generations which played out beautifully. My main criticism is that it bogs down at times. The clouds of the Maloja Snake are an impressive accent.

A meta-drama that has a devastating personal conflict running through its narrative. Each interaction between Binoche and Stewart pulses with an electrical ambiguity, as fiction and reality collide as if two passing clouds become one.