What it’s about
Quiet, remote, and seemingly self-contained, Stephane (Auteuil) is a gifted violin technician who’s especially sensitive to the needs of his elite musician clients. He also listens patiently to his slightly older business partner, Maxime (Dussollier), a handsome rake who has left his wife of many years for beautiful, rising young violinist Camille (Bart). But enmity and heartbreak rear their ugly heads as Camille finds herself increasingly drawn to the emotionally reserved Stephane.
Why we love it
Sautets A Heart in Winter an intense, beautifully acted drama about a mystifyingly frigid man and the menagetrois hefinds himself embroiled in is brimming over with the sort of nuanced romantic intrigue the French have a particular gift for. Beart is smart and seductive as Camille (her authentic renditions of Ravel are the result of a years training), but its Auteuils restrained performance as her baffling, obscure object of desire that lends the film its chilly je ne sais quoi. Give Winter a little time to thaw, and youll be amply rewarded.
Daniel Auteuil, Emmanuelle Bart, Andr Dussollier, lisabeth Bourgine Claude Sautet