Kings and Queen

French portrait of seemingly ordinary life, steeped with hints at a dark reality that refuses to admit the truth. Nora is a dwice-divorced, hip, intelligent art gallery owner, and mother to an 11-year-old boy. She's now engaged to a very rich man, and has a father dying of stomach cancer. A standard set-up to any Hollywood melodrama, but Hollywood doesn't exist in France. Therefore, Nora may not care about any of them the way we think she should. Ismael is Nora's most recent lover, stuck in a mental institution only because of poor judgment. These characters talk for real, and walk right past the emotional traps that any Hollywood screenplay might fall into. Stunning conclusion leaves an almost dirty taste in the mouth.