In the wake of awards season, there are a number of titles one doesn't catch that you tell yourself you'll watch on DVD. I've Loved You So Long wasn't nominated for any Oscars. Like other overlooked films, the remarkable craft on display ensures it will be remembered moreso than a number of 2009 Academy Award nominees (Wanted, for example). If you're looking for an arthouse reprieve from Watchmen weekend, this is the perfect alternative.
The Movie
Juliette (Kristin Scott-Thomas) has recently been released from prison after serving a fifteen year sentence. What for is left a mystery for for a while, and the circumstances of the crime are only revealed even later on. She stays with her sister Lea (Elsa Zylberstein) and family while she acclimates to the outside world again. Juliette is as frequently reluctant to share and open up as Lea is to confide and share. The story proceeds holding all cards to its chest, culminating in a final scene that is as rewarding as the journey there.
The greatest injustice perpetrated by the Academy this year was omitting Scott-Thomas from the list of Best Actress nominees. Here she gives us an unvarnished and unsentimental portrayal of this woman, and as an actress gives not a stray thought to adding a plea for likability. I can count on one hand the number of actors working today who you can see in their eyes don't give a shit if you think their character is likable or not.
Ten, twenty, or more years from now, the sharpest acting teachers will direct their students to take in the performances of Scott-Thomas and Zylberstein in this film. Their relationship is so richly textured and expressed that it lends truth to the theory that it's all in the casting.
First-time and aspiring directors should study Philippe Claudel's clean, no-bullshit approach in framing his story and shots in his debut feature. Not a single beat in the telling of the film could be accused of being superfluous. Claudel directs his own script and in each choice, he appears to have thought only of the concise needs of the story and the audience.
Video & Audio
The movie was shot on video, but that doesn't detract from the story. Upconverting the DVD is not a bad alternative to the Blu-ray, since the source isn't super hi-res in the first place. An English dub track is included in addition to a standard 5.1 stereo mix. It should go without saying that the dub track is terrible, but it is worth noting that Scott-Thomas does her own dubbing.
Supplemental Features
The extras are limited to a selection of deleted scenes that include optional commentary (translated via subtitle). An interesting watch more than deleted scenes on other releases thanks to Claudel's comments. I would have very much enjoyed a subtitled commentary track or a behind the scenes featurette, but these select scenes are more than you usually find on a Sony Pictures Classics foreign language release.
Final Thoughts
In these lean economic times, if you can more easily afford the DVD, you lose no features by saving some scratch. Additionally, as mentioned above, the source video was not so rich as to make upconversion look grainy in the least. If you're Netflixing or price is no barrier, unquestionably go with the Blu-ray.
The movie is worth owning and revisiting due to the nuance inherent in the performances and craft of the production as a whole. This one should be filed on the shelf where you keep movies that friends have likely not seen. The night people are over and asking to be surprised, this is just the right pick.