The film follows the titular psychiatrist (Virginie Efira) who has decided to end her practice to author a book while one of the few patients she has is an actress embroiled in an affair with her co-star where Sibyl becomes enamored with her to the point that the woman becomes an inspiration to her novel. It is a film that explores the life of a woman who is trying to restart her writing career as she ended her psychiatry practice while retaining a few patients including this up-and-coming actress who has found herself in an affair with her co-star just as she’s about to go to Italy to make a film that she’s starring in. The film’s screenplay by Justine Triet and Arthur Harari has an offbeat narrative as it relates to Sibyl who is trying to write a book yet she often looks back at elements of her own past including a tumultuous relationship with her former flame Gabriel (Niels Schneider) whom she hadn’t seen in years while she cares for their daughter Selma (Jeanne Arra-Bellanger) with her husband Etienne (Paul Hamy) whom she shares another daughter with him in Livia (Liv Harari).
The script plays into Sibyl’s own struggles in writing while thinking about her past as her meeting with the actress Margot Vasilis (Adele Exarchopoulos) would give her ideas with her book though her mentor/shrink Dr. Katz (Arthur Harari) feels that it is a bad idea as well as being unethical in her profession. Sibyl would get calls from Margot who starts to unravel emotionally and mentally where Sibyl reluctantly travels to the island of Stromboli to be onset to help Margot who is having an affair with co-star in Igor Maleski (Gaspard Ulliel) although he is married to the film’s director Mikaela “Mika” Sanders (Sandra Huller). Sibyl’s presence would only add more chaos to the production where Mika would unravel at one point where Sibyl ponders if she has gone too far in the lives of people while also dealing with those who are in her life such as her husband, children, and sister Edith (Laure Calamy).
Triet’s direction is stylish for not just its unconventional narrative but also in the fact that it is set in Paris with one key sequence set in the Italian volcano island of Stromboli and its nearby locations. Triet opens the film where Sibyl talks to a colleague about ending her practice at a sushi restaurant as it sets the stage for the messiness that is to occur in the film. While there are some wide shots that Triet uses to play into the locations, much of the Triet’s direction emphasizes on close-ups and medium shots as it plays into the way characters interact with one another including some of the flashbacks in Sibyl’s life. Notably in scenes where she is with Gabriel as they are life-long friends though their romantic and sexual relationship would eventually become troubled with Edith expressing concern since Sibyl does not say much about the death of their mother. Triet also creates these unique compositions that also has this sense of repetition in the way the actors are framed as it play into Sibyl’s own sense of isolation. Even as Triet highlight a woman becoming obsessed with her new patient as the only other patient she has is a child in Daniel (Adrien Bellemare) whom she plays board games with to get him to talk.
Triet would also play into the chaos that goes in the making of a film once Sibyl arrives to Italy where she is there to help Margot who has become depressed and despondent. Even to the point where she would only listen to Sibyl who would be on a set to direct Margot that only adds the turmoil in the production. The film’s third act does not just play into Sibyl going too far into her involvement during a film shoot where Mika unravels but also an aftermath that highlights Sibyl coming to terms with her presence in an already combustible situation. Notably as she returns to France where the past would return as her obsession in creating a book about Margot would also cost her own sanity and morality. Triet does maintain this tone that is messy in its offbeat narrative, yet it works to play into a woman who realized she had gone too far in her obsession. Overall, Triet crafts a gripping and rapturous film about a woman finding a muse for her novel only to be caught up in that woman’s life and her own tumultuous past.
Cinematographer Simon Beaufils does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its low-key approach to lighting for many of the film’s nighttime interior scenes as well as some natural lighting for the daytime interior/exterior scenes. Editor Laurent Senechal does excellent work with the editing in the usage of straight rhythmic cuts to play into the drama and suspense as well as a few jump cuts to play into some of the film’s minimal humor. Production designer Toma Baqueni does amazing work with the look of Sibyl’s apartment that she lives with her family as well as her office where she meets with remaining patients she has and the villa she would stay in Italy. Costume designer Virginie Montel does fantastic work with the costumes with the women often wearing stylish clothing as well as some casual clothing while Igor would also wear some stylish and expensive clothing.
Makeup artist Sandra Campisi does terrific work with the makeup as it is minimal work into the look of the characters in the way they would appear in a film. Special effects supervisor Guy Monbillard and visual effects supervisor Hugues Namur do nice work with the film’s minimal effects for a few scenes at Stromboli as well as scenes of the film within a film. Sound editor Ingrid Simon does superb work with the sound in the way a location sounds up-close and from afar as well as the way music sounds during a film shoot. Music supervisor Thibault Deboaisne creates a fun music soundtrack that mixes all kinds of music in contributions from Nina Simone, the Raconteurs, Benoit Daniel, The Les Humphrie Singers, Roy Orbison, and some classical pieces by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Vivaldi.
The casting by Cynthia Arra and Laure Ballarin is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles from Aurelien Bellanger as an editor for Sibyl’s book, Lorenzo Lefebvre as the assistant director Galotin, Jeanne Arra-Bellanger and Liv Harari as Sibyl’s daughters in Selma and Livia respectively, and Adrien Bellemare as a young patient of Sibyl in Daniel as a child who loves to play board games as a way to talk about his problems. Arthur Harari is superb as Sibyl’s psychiatrist/mentor Dr. Katz who believes that Sibyl is putting herself in danger in involving herself with Margot’s life. Paul Hamy is terrific as Sibyl’s husband Etienne as a house-husband who stays home to watch over the children while coping with her distant behavior. Laure Calamy is fantastic as Sibyl’s sister Edith who also helps Etienne in taking care of Sibyl’s kids as she is someone still coping with the death of their mother as well as her own issues towards Sibyl including her past relationship with Gabriel.
Niels Schneider is excellent as Sibyl’s former flame Gabriel as he is seen in flashbacks as someone who was passionately in love with her only to feel slighted over her choice of career over their happiness where he would not see her again for years. Sandra Huller is brilliant as Mika as a film director trying to make a film with her husband Igor and Margot as she deals with the chaos in shooting as well as Margot’s behavior as she would become unhinged by Sibyl’s presence leading to a breakdown during a shoot. Gaspard Ulliel is amazing as Igor as a film star whom Margot is sleeping with even though he is married to the film’s director they are working on as he is charming but also is willing to get his way where he would put Sibyl into a moral quandary.
Adele Exarchopoulos is incredible as Margot Vasilis as a young actress about to get her break as she finds herself in an affair with Igor that would result in a lot of complicated issues where Exarchopoulos displays a sense of despair and angst of a woman who needs help with her own issues. Finally, there’s Virginie Efira in a phenomenal performance as the titular character as a psychiatrist who decided to end her practice, save for a few clients, to return to writing where she finds inspiration through Margot although finds herself becoming more involved with Margot’s tumultuous life where she is also forced to deal with the chaos in her own past. Efira and Exarchopoulos are the major highlights of the film in terms of the way they deal with themselves as well as their need for each other with the latter being this force of nature in the film’s second half while the former maintains this strong front only to eventually unravel where the two together bring out the best in each other.
Sibyl is a sensational film by Justine Triet as it features great performances from both Virginie Efira and Adele Exarchopoulos. Along with its supporting cast, gorgeous visuals, a wondrous music soundtrack, and its study of obsession and morality. It is a film that is not afraid to be flawed in its presentation of its characters as well as displaying what a woman will do to get inspiration for her novel only to realize own unethical decisions that would force her to deal with her own past. In the end, Sibyl is a phenomenal film by Justine Triet.
Justine Triet Films: Age of Panic - In Bed with Victoria - Anatomy of a Fall
© thevoid99 2024
The film revolves around a thirty-something lawyer who witnesses a violent incident at a wedding reception where she meets an old friend who is accused of the incident while also meeting a former client who would later become her assistant. It is a film that explore a woman and her tumultuous life where she is a single mother with two young daughters, an ex-husband who has become a blogger that has authored a story based on their marriage and being a lawyer with so much chaos in her life. Justine Triet’s screenplay, with additional contributions from Thomas Levy-Lasne, is straightforward in its narrative yet it is more of a character study for the film’s titular character in Victoria Spick (Virginie Efira) as she attends a wedding where she meets her old friend Vincent (Melvil Poupaud) who is with his wife Eve (Alice Daquet) and their dog. A former client in Sam (Vincent Lacoste) was also at the wedding as he was a former drug addict/dealer who has been clean for years but is in near-debt as he is hoping to go into law where Victoria hires him as an assistant as well as to watch her two young children when she’s at work.
Triet’s script also plays into the many complications in Victoria’s life as her ex-husband David (Laurent Poitrenaux) has published a story on his blog based on their marriage claiming it is fictional, but it had a lot of personal things that Victoria does not want to share. Things get worse when Victoria bumps into the bride at the wedding in Suzanna (Sabrina Seyvecou) who confronts her about Vincent as the unfortunate meeting led to a six-month suspension from practicing law. It all plays into Victoria’s sense of cynicism as well as the need for answers as she would go to her psychiatrist (Pierre Maillet) and a tarot card reader (Elsa Wolliaston) for those things. Even in engaging in sexual one-night stands with weird men would prove to be unfulfilling as she is on the verge of an emotional breakdown with Sam watching and trying to help her.
Triet’s direction does have some style in the visuals while much of it is straightforward in its approach to drama. Shot on location in Paris and areas near the city, Triet uses medium shots and close-ups to play into the interaction between characters as well as some key scenes where the first 10 minutes of the film play into the chaos of Victoria’s life as she would attend this wedding as the reception is filled with some crazy moments including animals and other bits. All of this before the title credits appear where Triet prepares everyone for what is to be this whirlwind of a woman’s life as she is about to go into total chaos. Triet does use some wide shots to establish the locations but also the world of courtrooms as they would become a key proponent for the film’s third act. Triet also knows when to slow things down when Victoria is at home or meeting a few people while much of the dramatic intensity occurs during a scene where she visits a bloggers meeting led by David that proves to be too much for her to manage.
Triet also maintains some visual repetition in the scenes where Victoria meets her psychiatrist and tarot card reader in the film’s first and second acts as the period where she is unable to work for six months highlight the messiness of everything where she would faint and pass out. The third act does have elements of dark humor as it plays into Victoria’s cynical view on love and the law where she reluctantly helps Vincent in his case against his wife who had chosen to divorce him because of a past tryst a long time ago. Vincent’s trial is one filled with a lot of humor involving a dog and a chimpanzee while Victoria’s own court battle against her husband is more serious though it plays into the idea of fiction and what can be used. It all plays into a woman on the verge of a breakdown as these two different legal events force her to confront her cynicism as well as figuring out who is there for her in her life. Overall, Triet crafts a compelling and witty film about a woman’s tumultuous life as she is being pushed to the edge.
Cinematographer Simon Beaufils does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of low-key lighting for many of the interior/exterior scenes at night as well as aiming for a naturalistic look for many of the daytime exterior scenes. Editor Laurent Senechal does amazing work with the editing with its stylish approach to montages as well as allowing shots to linger for a bit longer to play into the drama and humor. Production designer Olivier Meidinger does excellent work with the look of Victoria’s apartment in its messy state as well as the look of the courtrooms that Victoria would attend. Costume designer Charlotte Vayasse does fantastic work with the costumes in some of the designer dresses that Victoria and the other women wears as well as the robes the attorney wears.
Makeup artists Charlotte Desnos, Michelle Van Brussel, and Hue Lan Van Duc do terrific work with some of the film’s minimal makeup work in the look of the women as well as the messy state at the wedding reception sequence. Visual effects supervisor Niranjan Siva does wonderful work with some of the film’s minimal visual effects that are set dressing for a few locations. Sound editor Olivier Touche does superb work with the sound in the way sparse sounds are presented in interior locations as well as the sound of a court room and at parties. Music supervisor Thibault Deboaisne does nice work with the film’s music soundtrack that features an array of music ranging from classical to pop music with contributions from Metronomy, Harry Nilsson, Chilly Gonzales, Mel Torme, and Sarah Lancman.
The casting by Cynthia Arra and Youna de Peretti is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles from co-writer Thomas Levy-Lasne as the groom, Sabrina Seyvecou as the bride, Arthur Harari as a chimpanzee trainer, Claire Burger as a former lover of Vincent who accused him of rape, Julie Moulier as a judge in Vincent & Eve’s case, Liv Harari and Jeanne Arra-Bellanger as David and Victoria’s daughters, Elsa Wolliaston as the tarot card reader, Pierre Maillet as Victoria’s psychiatrist, and Sophie Fillieres as a friend of Victoria who helps her out early on while also dealing with the chaos that is happening around Victoria. Laure Calamy is fantastic as Victoria’s lawyer Christelle who defends her against David where she tries to help Victoria in the case. Alice Daquet is superb as Vincent’s wife Eve who claims that he stabbed her while later suing him for divorce with claims over what he has done in their marriage though Victoria feels sympathetic towards her despite defending Vincent.
Laurent Poitrenaux is excellent as Victoria’s ex-husband David as this blogger that authored a story based on their marriage that is filled with salacious details that Victoria does not want to reveal publicly as he tries to manipulate the courts about what is fiction and reality. Melvil Poupaud is brilliant as Vincent as an old friend of Victoria that she meets at a wedding where he is accused of stabbing his wife where he asks for her help only to later help him when Eve sues him for divorce following a brief reconciliation that becomes even more toxic. Vincent Lacoste is amazing as Sam as a former client of Victoria who attends the wedding as he asks for a job in being Victoria’s assistant while falling for her as he deals with her troubled lifestyle and emotional breakdown. Finally, there’s Virginie Efira in a tremendous performance as Victoria Spick as a thirty-something lawyer who is raising two young daughters where Efira brings in some humor to her role as a woman that is being pushed to the edge while also yearning for some companion and stability despite her cynicism as it is one of Efira’s finest performances.
In Bed with Victoria is a sensational film from Justine Triet that features a great leading performance from Virginie Efira. Along with its supporting cast, compelling character study of a woman with a chaotic lifestyle, wondrous visuals, and an exhilarating music soundtrack. It is an unconventional comedy-drama that plays into a woman navigating the messiness of her professional and personal life in her search for stability. In the end, In Bed with Victoria is a phenomenal film by Justine Triet.
Justine Triet Films: Age of Panic - Sibyl (2019 film) – Anatomy of a Fall
© thevoid99 2024
