Movie Review: Misericordia

There are certain filmmakers who are masters at keeping their audience on their toes, using the odd little truths that exist just beneath the surface of everyday mundanity to leave them wondering just where the story will wind up. French director Alain Guiraudie is a great example of this and his latest film, Misericordia, is a perfect representation of his gifts.

Out of work baker Jérémie (Félix Kysyl) returns to his hometown for the funeral of his former boss, with whom he shared a close but ambiguously defined relationship. After the memorial he joins a small group for a meal at the home of the deceased’s widow, Martine (Catherine Frot). As the evening comes to an end, she insists upon his sleeping in her son Vincent’s (Jean-Baptiste Durand) old bedroom to avoid driving drunk, which he reluctantly agrees to do.

The next day, Jérémie takes a walk through the village and its surrounding woods, where he has unusual encounters with Vincent, the priest, L’abbé Philippe Griseul (Jacques Develay), and Vincent’s friend Walter (David Ayala). Something about his day inspires him to remain longer, which Martine appears happy to accommodate. While he no longer lives at home, the arrangement angers Vincent as he becomes suspicious that Jérémie might be trying to make a move on his mother and so begins to harass his old friend as he wanders the town. When Vincent doesn’t return home one night, people quickly suspect that something nefarious has happened to him, and Jérémie is the prime suspect.

Working from his own script, Guiraudie captures the isolationist peculiarities of small-town life perfectly. Blending moments of dark humor, eerie atmosphere, and deadpan melodrama, Misericordia is precision engineered to keep the viewer glued to the screen, an experience made all the more pleasurable by Claire Mathon’s painterly cinematography. The reserved performances by the flawless cast keep their characters’ intentions shrouded in mystery, excepting for the high-strung Vincent.

A striking meditation on repressed desires, guilt, the merits of punishment versus forgiveness, and who should be allowed to decide which is proffered; this is the sort of film that makes the viewer want to find someone to discuss the little details with as soon as it ends. Elegantly strange, thought-provoking, and haunting, Misericordia is a genuine masterwork of a movie. ★★★★★