My King

Mon roi

MAÏWENN
France, 2015
125 minutes, Color
Official website

"You leave people for the same reason that attracted you in the first place," someone says during the course of the tumultuous, decade-long relationship that is the beating heart of the extraordinarily passionate drama My King. In the film's first sequence, Tony (actress-filmmaker Emmanuelle Bercot) tears up her right knee in an off-screen skiing accident her therapist later hints was less of an accident and more of a cry for help. What weighs heavily on Tony's mind is Georgio (Vincent Cassel), her mercurial man-child of a partner and their emotional rollercoaster of a life. As Tony undergoes painful, tedious physical therapy, she remembers the highs and lows of their time together. The fourth feature from actress-turned-filmmaker Maïwenn, My King won Bercot the coveted Best Actress prize at last year's Cannes festival. It is a cautionary tale about the risks, rewards, and ramifications of love with an improper partner.--Eddie Cockrell

In French with English subtitles