I was so unexpectedly blown away by this film. The movie tells a powerful story, but the manner in which the plot is revealed is the real achievement. Ghyslaine Cote skillfully provides the viewer with a glimpse into a very violent crime in a guarded and artistic way, allowing the audience to feel the brutality of the attack without seeing the gory details. The trauma of the "event" -- both while it is taking place and as we watch its resultant longterm consequences -- is so effectively conveyed on the faces of the women, especially Jacinthe Laguë (Manon.) The film is one of subtle intensity peppered with flashes of jarring images that pierce you like Thibodeau's knife. For "foreign-film-phobes": you will become so engrossed in the story you will not notice that you are hearing a foreign language or reading subtitles. I truly hope that this film goes the way of "Life Is Beautiful" and is seen by mass American audiences despite the subtitles.
Review of The Five of Us
