A Private Life review: Jodie Foster shines in compelling French mystery
If you thought you had seen all Jodie Foster has to offer, just wait until you see her in A Private Life, in which she has her first-ever French-speaking lead role.
Foster plays Dr. Lilian Steiner, an American psychiatrist who has lived in France for years and has an adult son with her ex-husband Gabriel (Daniel Auteuil). When her regular patient Paula (Virginie Efira) dies, Lilian doesn’t buy the story that she killed herself and becomes obsessed with proving that she was murdered by either her husband Simon (Mathieu Amalric) or daughter Valerie (Luana Bajrami).
Foster received a Best Actress nomination at the Lumiere Awards (the French version of the Oscars) last year, becoming the first American to do so. The recognition is rightfully deserved. Her French is very convincing and she holds her own opposite native French speakers. It must be so hard performing in a language that’s not your own and still giving a nuanced and complex performance.
If you’re coming to the movie for Foster, you’ll be satisfied, because she is brilliant and her character is juicy and complicated and she makes some questionable decisions once her informal investigation consumes her. But if the plot brought you to A Private Life, you may feel a bit disappointed because the mystery is slight and underwhelming in the end. It’s gripping for the most part, but the resolution doesn’t quite do it justice and I wanted more from it.
That’s because A Private Life is actually a character study disguised as a mystery thriller. That aspect just gives Lilian a reason to reconnect with her ex-husband, who helps her solve the case. They have an unusually friendly relationship post-divorce and form a little detective duo. This dynamic is the highlight of the film, and Foster’s partnership with Auteuil is a joy to watch.
A Private Life is a compelling and amusing character study packaged as a mystery thriller, with Foster working at the highest level.
In cinemas from Friday 26th June