What it’s about
Georges (Trintignant) and Anne (Riva), a loving, elderly Parisian pair, have spent a long and happy life together. Then one day, Anne has a minor stroke at the breakfast table. After a brief hospital stay, she comes home to stay, but the prognosis is terminal. Georges cares for her with love and tenderness, but Anne’s health continues to decline until she is bedridden and comatose. Daughter Eva (Huppert) comes to help her father, but she is clearly more of a burden than a comfort. Meanwhile, Georges struggles to carry on.
Why we love it
Writer/director Michael Haneke is known for producing unflinching films that force us to confront life’s cruelties. Winner of the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, this touching, sensitive meditation on mortality was clearly made with unwavering care, with the director coaxing indelible performances from the two leads (alas, only Riva received an Oscar nod). Huppert also excels as the distant, conflicted daughter who’s unable to reach her father. With the assured and devastating “Amour,” Haneke has crafted his masterpiece.
Emmanuelle Riva, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Isabelle Huppert, William Shimell, Rita Blanco, Dinara Drukarova, Carole Franck, Laurent Capelluto, Damien Jouillerot, Walid Afkir Michael Haneke
Emmanuelle Riva Jean-Louis Trintignant Isabelle Huppert William Shimell Rita Blanco Dinara Drukarova Carole Franck Laurent Capelluto Damien Jouillerot Walid Afkir Michael Haneke
