Die Wolken von Sils Maria

Former film critic Olivier Assayas is probably one of those few people who inspire me on a creative level. Not that strange if you consider one of Assayas' own influences: anarchist and situationist Guy Debord. French intellectuals in the 1960s were, in my opinion, too often needlessly complex theoretically and parlor socialists or would-be revolutionaries politically. In contrast, Debord's refreshing anarchist views were typical for the radicality of the 1968-generation and were more about individual freedom, artistic aspirations and fighting against a new form of determinism: consumption. In that respect, Assayas' Après mai was one of the best films I've seen in years. In Clouds of Sils Maria he puts on his meta-shoes and tells the story about an older actress who'll perform in the same play she did when she was young: Juliette Binoche plays Maria Enders who plays Helena. In the meanwhile Valentine (a brilliant Kristen Stewart, who would've expected?!), the personal assistant of Maria, resembles a version of Maria when she was young. Joanne Ellis (Chloë Grace Moretz), an up-and-coming actress with the reputation of a troublemaker, is Maria's co-star in the theater play. But when the play (about a young girl (Sigrid) who seduces an older woman (Helena)) starts to reflect reality (especially because Maria used to play Sigrid herself), the film begins to get an extra - metaphorical - layer. In the end we are confronted with thoughts about time, change, fame, getting older and conflict between generations. Clouds of Sils Maria is a beautiful film with some very good acting, especially by Stewart. It also raises interesting questions about contemporary stardom and transience. Nevertheless, this movie is (feels?) less personal than Assayas' previous one and therefor misses a bit of the uppercut I was hoping for.

Fantastic work from both Juliette Binoche and Kristen Stewart. The latter showed some more naturality in Still Alice and here she has a lot more screen time and is pretty great throughout. It's not an incredibly showy performance, though, not like Binoche's, but I could get behind it for awards love. Chloe Moretz's empty, superficial acting style actually works perfectly for her character here. I doubt it was really much work for her, but it works and she's not a distraction like she usually is. Juliette Binoche is amazing, as always. I could've seen her actually gaining traction for this film (had it been released near the end of the year). The film as a whole is... really weird. It's very entertaining throughout, never once dull, but it feels sort of aimless the more it goes on and while I get what points it was trying to make, it just felt a little too scattered to truly be great.

This is a seriously clever film, with an almost watertight screenplay that keeps you completely engrossed from start to finish and some mesmerising central performances. It is a bit harder to unlock than more mainstream movies, but it provides a hugely satisfying and intriguing discussion when it comes to the end.

Unlike most Hollywood takes on the state of show business and celebrities in the modern world, which is more often than not pretty depressing (take recent films like Birdman and Maps To The Stars), this European film has a much more elegant atmosphere to it whilst it delves into the world of this ageing actress struggling to keep her cool under a lot of pressure.

The film has some absolutely fascinating insights into the world of show business. It looks at jealousy and media pressure on older actresses, whilst also putting across an ironic, satirical poke at the pretentiousness that so many of us have been guilty of with regards to art. There's a lot of talk in this film about reading into films perhaps more than they need to be, but also how more mainstream movies sometimes don't get the deeper recognition they deserve from elitist viewers because of their reputation, which I found absolutely enthralling to watch unfold.

Also, there are some very clever parallels between the relationship between the two main characters, this actress (Juliette Binoche) and her personal assistant (Kristen Stewart), and the characters in the play that they are rehearsing for. It seemed to me that the parallels were pretty deliberate, given that it was almost impossible to tell whether the two were rehearsing or talking to each other for real during the practice scenes, which I thought was a brilliant little touch that really helped to emphasise the confusion and deeper trouble that the characters were facing in the story.

Beyond that, there's so much more to think about in the plot, and I'm sure it requires multiple viewings to fully understand, but it's still a hugely captivating drama first time off anyway, which is absolutely brilliant to see.

Away from the story, the performances here are pretty fantastic too. Juliette Binoche perfectly captures her character's sense of confusion and loss as she goes through this time in her life, whilst also making her a recognisably snooty and diva-ish person that you can understand much clearer. Meanwhile, Kristen Stewart is excellent as the personal assistant, who tries hard to get to her employer, but often ends up feeling frustrated, and makes her character just as interesting, even if she is a side-player in the grand scheme of things.

Another point on the performances is that everyone, not only Binoche and Stewart, deliver their lines so brilliantly. It seems a pretty trivial thing to say, but in this film, I noticed what proper dialogue delivery sounds like so much more than anything else I've seen; every word was so clear and crisp, with fantastic emotion behind it, and that was just wonderfully impressive to witness for me.

I was very glad that i attended the opening ceremony of the Beirut International Film Festival with the presence of Juliette Binoche screening this touching movie! We're talking here about a festival movie so if you're not ready for a lot of talking scenes, well this is not for you! The story itself is brought by Binoche to director Olivier Assayas about an actress at the peak of her career who is asked again to play a role in a play that made her famous years ago! Let's be clear: this movie is all about stunning performances by a great Trio of actresses Binoche, Stewart and Moretz! Everyone was so great performing the characters. Binoche made it clear that this movie talk about her career and how can it be disturbed or touched emotionally on every level when she'll reach a certain age and when new generations of actors will rise! A must see for cinema lovers and especially for professional actors!

Greetings again from the darkness. Most of us don't spend much time re-living our past, and we certainly don't go through the emotional turmoil of analyzing our early lives from a different perspective. This story puts actress Maria (Juliette Binoche) in those shoes and then we watch as she fights, claws and battles her way through.

Maria is a well-respected veteran actress who has been offered a role in the revival of the play that made her a star more than 20 years earlier. The play was written by her mentor, who dies suddenly as she is on her way to visit. Hotshot director Klaus (Lars Eidinger) wants Maria for the role of the older woman, and this is difficult for Maria to accept since she played what she considers the far more interesting younger woman in the first version. Internal psychological warfare breaks out.

Maria's personal assistant Valentine (Kristen Stewart) struggles to keep Maria informed of today's world – celebrity gossip is especially key in their conversations. They also run lines together, and the parallels between the play and their real lives are so prevalent that the lines are often blurred between written word and spoken word. Things get really dicey when Jo-Ann (Chloe Grace Moretz) enters the picture as the talented, extremely popular, personally out of control actress slated to play opposite Maria in the play.

These three actresses are exceptional … yes, even you Kristen Stewart haters will be impressed. They each bring extraordinary depth to their role, and all are a bit outside of what would be considered their comfort zone. Their exchanges are fun, but what's not said is every bit as exciting and key.

Filmed in the Sils Maria area of the Alps, the landscape is beyond breathtaking. Maloja Snake is the title of the play, and it refers to the fantastic cloud formations that snake through the peaks and valleys of this marvel of nature. The scenery is a nice complement to the emotional rides each of the characters take, and writer/director Olivier Assayas ensures that we have no shortage of talking points after the film.