I am sorry there was no post yesterday. I am not entirely sure what happened to me, but afterwork yesterday I just turned off for lack of a better word. I think that the pace of watching and writing from the film festival left me exhausted and the anxiety of yesterday’s jury verdict pushed me a little over the edge. Even today I was too exhausted to finish both of my outstanding SIFF reviews or watch a second film to make up for yesterday. Regardless, I am not going to beat myself up about this, I just felt like I ought to explain yesterday’s absence before jumping into today’s movie.

35 Shots of Rum (2008, Dir. Claire Denis)

35 Shots of Rum is an extremely intimate viewing experience. The father daughter relationship portrayed by Alex Descas and Mati Diop as Lionel and Joséphine is revelatory in its specificity. After Joséphine’s mother passed, she and her father became inseparable. The film follows the pair and their makeshift family from their apartment building as Lionel accepts that eventually and soon Joséphine will need to go out on her own.

From the minimalist score in the opening credits, the somber tone and personal storytelling are telegraphed perfectly. Claire Denis wields her tools as a director subtly yet sufficiently. Each scene builds upon the last creating a perfect crescendo of emotions through the very final shot.