FRENCH FILM FESTIVAL REVIEW: LET THE SUNSHINE IN (UN BEAU SOLEIL INTERIER)



3/10

Isabelle (Juliette Binoche) is looking for love. A divorced artist and a single mom she craves the attention of men. In every next perfect stranger she sees her destiny, but only for a while until disappointment kicks in. Who is to blame? The men, the age we live in? Or Isabelle herself? Whatever the answer she will just keep on trying, and she is on a frustrating journey with no beginning and no end.

Director Clair Denis had tried to impress moviegoers with another "in your face" female drama of sexual frustration and unfulfilled desires of middle age, only this time around her new creation has no focus. The characters stumble in and out of the film, seemingly without purpose, which is more frustrating for the viewer than for the movie’s protagonist Isabelle.

Claire Denis is one of the most thought provoking directors of our time. I loved her previous film BASTARDS. She is the queen of raw style with plots that ask more questions than give answers. LET THE SUNSHINE IN may be raw but not in a good way. It is terribly underdeveloped. 

Juliette Binoche gives a fabulous performance, but she can be entertaining even if she reads a telephone book. Naturally beautiful and always stylish, Binoche is radiant at the age of 54 (not that the age matters, but it makes her looks even more impressive). Here, unfortunately, she is not enough to to make the weak script work. The move is a collection of Mise-en-scenes and dialogues about nothing, with characters themselves often acknowledging they are going around in circles. There are a few sensuous erotic moments (typical for Denis), but then again it is all even more frustrating when the dialogue that follows doesn’t make much sense.

Some movies try too hard and put too much on display. LET THE SUNSHINE IN simply does not have enough to keep one invested or engaged.

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