Anatomy of a Fall Review – Riveting Crime Drama, A Must See

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Category: Indies, Docs, Foreign Film

Published on Tuesday, 30 January 2024 07:06

Written by Janet Walker

Anatomy of a Fall, from NEON, presents a thrilling crime drama, as a woman is accused of murdering her husband, and is then arrested and put on trial where every detail of their contentious relationship is revealed.

The film begins in a busy household, as writer Sandra Voyter, played by Sandra Huller, a successful writer, is being interviewed. Suddenly, music is playing loudly. She is drinking wine, and the interviewer, Marge Berger, played by Jehnny Beth, is somewhat unnerved by the interruption. We can see the mood of Sandra, doesn't appear flustered or angry over the music, almost as if she is accustomed to the interruption. The camera moves around the house, and we see a boy, Daniel, played by Milo Machado Graner, attempting to give his dog a bath. It feels like a chaotic household.

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They realize they can't finish the interview as the music is making it impossible to continue. She leaves and the boy follows her. They live in a village, in the mountains, in rural France. The boy and the dog are going for a walk. Sometime later the boy returns home from his walk and finds his father, Samuel, played by Samuel Theis, dead in a pool of blood. They telephone emergency services, the police arrive, and the body is taken to the morgue and the investigation begins.

As Sandra was the only person in the home, she becomes the primary suspect. She hires an attorney, Vincent, played by Swann Arlaud, who explains she will need to tell her story and testify in French. Before the film jumps ahead to the trial, she is explaining the dynamics of her relationship and desire to protect her son from hearing any details about his father that may harm him in the future.

Suddenly it is one year later, and she is on trial for the murder of her husband. As the trial begins, the journalist is testifying to her recollections and assumptions of the time before the death. We hear the prosecutor press her for answers she doesn't possess. Soon the forensic team presents a reenactment; and again, the prosecutor refutes the expert witness conclusions as probable but not conclusive.

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Soon, the details become irrelevant as the state of the relationship, her success and his failures, and the expert testimony of the therapist who immediately prescribed an opiate to control his moods when he sought treatment for the injury of his son.

As the trial moved further from the facts to establishing reasonable doubt in her innocence, the prosecutor presents into evidence a tape Samuel made, as he was mining their relationship for characters, actions, and dialogue.

The exchange began pleasantly, then it moved into sore spots, her success and how they could work to pull him back to a level of success that he believed he deserves, to name calling, and infidelity, and as it spirals into irreparable injury, he hurls accusations of sexual dysfunction, and it is clear that their relationship suffered trauma, and withholding, name calling, spiteful darts, and evil accusations are part of their cycle. This time however, it dissolves into physical violence.

The audience never knows if she committed the crime.

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Anatomy of a Fall, a riveting crime drama, is an intimate portrait of relationships, how men and women use physically tactics and abuse to further their own goals. Sandra Huller delivers a gripping performance, fighting for her life, we are unsure if she is a cold-hearted unfeeling killer or unjustly accused.

Anatomy of a Fall has been heralded as tour de force, with the film community embracing the performances and direction. Nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Achievement in Film Editing.

A must see, Anatomy of a Fall, is playing in select cities or on streaming platforms. See it.

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Country: France.

Language: French, English with subtitles.

Runtime: 151 minutes.

Director: Justine Triet.

Producer: Marie-Ange Luciani, David Thion.

Writer: Justine Triet, Arthur Harari.

Cast: Sandra Huller, Swann Arlund, Milo Machado Graner, Antoine Reinartz, Samuel Theis, Jehnny Beth, Saadia Bentaieb, Camille Ruterford, Anne Rotger, Sophie Fillieres, Messi, Julien Comte, Pierre-Francois Garel, Savannah Rol, Ilies Kadri, Vincent Courcelle-Labrousse, Cecile Brunet-Ludet, Nesrine Slaoui, Antonie Bueno, Anne-Lise Heimburger.