Arnaud Desplechin (Un conte de Noël, France 2008)
Arnaud Desplechin in person

Perhaps the most celebrated of contemporary French directors, Arnaud Desplechin (In the Company of Men, SFIFF 2004; Kings and Queen, SFIFF 2005) returns with another sprawling family drama. In this Cannes award winner, Desplechin tells the story of a family Christmas get-together—and brings to it his own verve and dizzying but delicious complexity. Emotionally resonant and wickedly funny, the film stars Catherine Deneuve as the cool matriarch of a fascinatingly dysfunctional family and Desplechin regular Mathieu Amalric as her estranged, unstable son who returns home for the holidays. The family, crowded together under the same roof, finds its solidarity quickly—and hilariously—devolving into feuding, drunkenness and bed-hopping, as everyone struggles to make sense of the mysteries of family, life and what lies ahead. Other French cinema regulars such as Chiara Mastroianni, Emmanuelle Devos and Hippolyte Girardot round out the expert ensemble cast. With the breadth of a sprawling novel and the wit of classic comedy, Desplechin proves once again that he is one of the most engagingly ambitious filmmakers of his time. “It filled me with unadulterated joy,” writes the New York Times’ A.O. Scott.

Written by Arnaud Desplechin, Emmanuel Bourdieu. Photographed by Eric Gautier. With Catherine Deneuve, Mathieu Amalric, Chiara Mastroianni, Jean-Paul Roussillon. (152 min. IFC Films)

October 8, 6:30 pm, Landmark's Clay Theatre
9:00 pm, Opening night reception, Restaurant Cassis, 2101 Sutter