Jusqu'à la garde

Denis Menochet, best known to American audiences as the French farmer in the introductory scene of Inglorious Bastards, gives a riveting and horrifying performance as an abusive husband and father separated from his wife and vying for joint custody. This is essentially a horror film, where the tightly wound father and husband is no less fearsom than a monster or killer.

Riveting directing by debuting Xavier Legrand and stellar acting by both actors playing parents (Léa Drucker and Denis Ménochet), and most importantly by the young actor Thomas Gloria. It's been a while since a decent movie by brothers Dardennes, here you'll their style and even more. Real and touching in every scene until the final credits. Precise use of close ups translating the real emotional power of the characters and accurately composed scenes provide a great experience of social drama on screen.

This film will make you uncomfortable in its realism, the scenes with the son and his father have to be seen to understand how outstanding and " life like " their performances are. It is tense and will keep you on the edge of your seat and yet it is no piece of fiction per se but a story taken from real life and rendered in a disturbing and touching way. A good example of the film maker's art with no gimmicks, a real story believably told. Watch it and see.

DOMESTIC TERRORISM, BUT YOU CAN'T LOOK AWAY.

You start with a custody battle and both sides have a different view on how things happened. What really went on, you'll never know but throughout the movie you start to unravel the reasons behind everything. And some questions do get answered. Others don't. But in the end, it ENDS!

This film has no score throughout and that was a perfect choice, since it relies on sound and dialogue a lot. Camerawork is stunning, especially a scene where the father chases the son out of the car into a little park in between apartment buildings.

The best acting comes from Denis Ménochet who plays the father (Antoine) and the young actor Thomas Gioria who plays the son (Julien), especially their interactions in the car are pure GOLD. The tension throughout this film is nerve wracking and you can tell anyone can snap at anytime, you're just waiting for it to happen and you're worried for anyone that's standing too close to be affected by the impact.

Director Xavier Legrand won the Silver Lion at Venice Film Festival in 2017 for directing this film.

I attended a matinee session and everyone was quiet throughout the entire film, until one particular scene. That's when I gasped as well and I noticed fellow moviegoers with their hand on their mouth in shock.

"Jusqu'à la garde" (Custody) is so intense it's too much to bear in the best possible way.

This is an intense film. Especially if you grew up with divorced parents. Everything's truthful. I didn't expect the film to turn into a thriller since it started like a social drama ala Ken Loach. The last part feels like a Hitchcock film sometimes. The cast did a great job, especially the little kid.