Title: Clouds of Sils Maria
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Olivier Assayas
Starring: Juliette Binoche, Kristen Stewart, Chloe Grace-Moretz
Runtime: 2 hrs 4 mins

What It Is: Twenty years ago Maria Enders (Binoche) played Sigrid on stage. This is a role that made her career. Now two decades later she is once again starring in Maloja Snake in the opposite lead of Helena. As she struggles with the demons of her previous turn as Sigrid, while watching the younf Jo-Ann Ellis (Grace-Moretz) spin her old character through a different web. Meanwhile she and her assistant Valentine (Stewart) try to get through this play, and Maria’s feelings about doing it while rehearsing in the French Alps area known as Sils Maria.

What We Think: Brilliant performances all around by this estrogen fueled cast. Binoche is vulnerable, and makes Maria a likeable actress character. Never does she make you feel sorry for Maria, but instead her turn looks to have you understand what Maria is experiencing. Overall the film brings with it a great sensibility, and a satirical almost grating look at a relationship between two womanat very different points in their lives. Thier differing views on the same works of fiction throughout do a marvelous job of demonstrating this.

Our Grade: B-, Kristen Stewart became the first American actress, and only the second thespian from the stars and bars to win a Cesar award for acting. She won Best Supporting Actress this year for this performance (the previous was in 2002 when Adrian Brody won for The Pianist. This is an extremely difficult film to find in theaters, but if your local arthouse happens to have it check it out, it’s worth the dough. Chlor Grace-Moretz continues to impress, this time she gets to do it with a good film! Lastly Kristan Stewart also continues to shake the Twilight stigma she’s had to deal with for some time. For further proof check out our review of her film Camp X-Ray right here: https://www.filmsnobreviews.com/2014/12/review-camp-x-ray

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