Winner of the top prize Palme d’Or at Cannes earlier this year, Anatomy of A Fall has one screening at this year’s ongoing French Film Festival at 8 pm, Dec. 1, at the SM Mall of Asia cinemas. It’s a ‘can’t miss’ for local cinephiles. Justine Triet directs and co-writes the screenplay, which utilizes the traditional film genre of the courtroom drama to deliver a deep psychological study and raise questions about how well we can examine and dissect a person through legal means.

We first meet Sandra (Sandra Hüller) as she’s being interviewed in her winter home. We get that she’s a noted writer discussing her new book and sense that rather than talk about herself, she flirtatiously keeps trying to turn the tables and learn more about the woman conducting the interview. A young son and the family dog are brought into the story, and we learn he’s visually impaired, but not told the history of this condition.

Then, very loud music suddenly blasts within the house, and it’s explained that this is her husband, Samuel (Samuel Theis), up in the attic, obviously undermining the interview. We cut to the son, Daniel, going for a walk with the dog, and upon his return, we finally see the father, but as a corpse, who presumably fell from the attic window. 

We’re then brought on a journey, a procedural of what transpires in cases like this. The police arriving on the scene, the evidence gathered, the suspicious death noted, and how a case is then built to indict Sandra for the death of her husband, the lawyer that Sandra will use and how they build up their defense, plus the crucial role Daniel may play with his testimony. 

At 2 hours 31 minutes, there is a case for arguing that Triet makes the film go on for too long and taxes our patience with her attention to detail and nuance. Still, to her credit, she turns this slow burn into a penetrating gaze of a family’s dynamics and keeps this viewer involved. The very measured pace and somber tone are also very much in character with the depiction of Sandra’s personality and how she keeps so much very close to her chest.

It’s this portrayal of Sandra that anchors the film and makes this such a fascinating study of character, the limitations of language, and how hard it is to really get to know a person in the context of a courtroom. And yet, the irony of how high the stakes are when one is the defendant.

This truly deserves the accolades it’s received and finds a way to revive the courtroom drama. And watch it for Hüller’s attack on her role.