Amour
2012127 minutes
rated PG-13
by Scott Mendelson
Michael Haneke's Amour is among the best films of the year, yet I'm not entirely sure who I would recommend it to. It is fearlessly acted by its leads (Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva) and it is insightful in ways beyond the mere clinical exhibition of its subject matter. It is the best film about aging since Sarah Polley's Away From Her and even that Alzheimer's drama has a few moments of release that Haneke is unwilling to provide here. But it is almost cruel in its depiction of the inevitable and for those not predisposed to seek out cinema for cinema's sake, it is a film that will bring only discomfort and pain. It is arguably a masterwork, but it's not a movie I ever intend to watch again. Whether you feel the need to watch it once, that's up to you.
