Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Movies: In The House (Dans La Maison)

  

(Drivebycuriosity) - "There is always a way into their house". This is the leitmotif of the French movie "In the house" (Dans la maison) which is running now in U.S. theaters in French with English subtitles (imdb).

Director François Ozon and author Juan Mayorga weaved a fine mystery tale. They tell the story of a French literature teacher and a gifted pupil who is writing a fictional report (a kind of novel) or maybe not. Ozon & Mayorga keep the audience in the dark about what is fact and what is just imagined by the boy. They blend entertainment with smart object lessons on manipulation, seduction, desire, sex, family and deliver charming disgressions about art and literature. The ambiguity and a lot of surprises make the film enthralling.

Ernst Umhauer, born in 1989, performs the seductive and calculating prodigy with a convincing mixture of eloquence and snobbery. Emmanuelle Seigner, as a bored housewife and the pupil`s (alleged?) object of desire, and Kristin Scott Thomas, as the teacher`s wife, are part of the fun.

"In the house" is a sophisticated comedy and a masterstroke of psychological cinema. This little gem is highly recommended for those who enjoy cinema entertainment beyond the usual block buster productions.


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