This particular film is not for blockbuster loving people. It has some subtlety and some nuance that's not easily caught. The slow pace of this movie reflects the internal struggle of the main character.
So basically we have a rich american socialite who lost everything. She's forced to relocate to Paris, having lost her home. In Paris she lives in the apartment of one of her friends.
Right from the beginning we can see that she leaves with a giant sum of cash (around 150-200k euros). She spends (overspends) on regular things, like a cab (1k tip), a coffee (100 euros) and gives away about 30k to some random stranger.
In trying to interpret these gestures, I can only conclude that she's only doing this because of how the grand gesture itself makes her feel. It makes her feel like how she felt 'before', when she had the luxury of being envied by everyone.
So she decides that at the end of the money she is going to kill herself. Bold decision. Ridicoulous decision by everyone's standards. Yet, appropriate and in tone with her character. I can only see a woman who's lived her best, most extravagant life and who wouldn't negociate even for a second with any other kind of lesser life.
The only victim in this whole scenario is her son and in here we can see her deep flaws. Her relationship with her son was based on her sole need to not feel alone. She took him out of school right after his father passed away. All the while his relationship with her was one of him needing a mother, having felt abandoned while in that school all alone, which is why he still follows her around like a puppy even at this age.
There is a line in the movie where she says to her son: "seeing you (Malcolm) clarified some things for your father". (hunch) I think it clarified that he wasnt his son. This could only mean that she didnt love her husband which is why her husband never loved Malcolm and distanced himself from them both but didnt leave them (which is the reason Malcolm shouldnt hate his father).
In conclusion, this movie is worth a watch simply because as flawed as she was (and boy was she!), she lived life in her own terms while completely disregarding her impact over anyone else which I can only characterize as bold but incredibly damaging.
So basically we have a rich american socialite who lost everything. She's forced to relocate to Paris, having lost her home. In Paris she lives in the apartment of one of her friends.
Right from the beginning we can see that she leaves with a giant sum of cash (around 150-200k euros). She spends (overspends) on regular things, like a cab (1k tip), a coffee (100 euros) and gives away about 30k to some random stranger.
In trying to interpret these gestures, I can only conclude that she's only doing this because of how the grand gesture itself makes her feel. It makes her feel like how she felt 'before', when she had the luxury of being envied by everyone.
So she decides that at the end of the money she is going to kill herself. Bold decision. Ridicoulous decision by everyone's standards. Yet, appropriate and in tone with her character. I can only see a woman who's lived her best, most extravagant life and who wouldn't negociate even for a second with any other kind of lesser life.
The only victim in this whole scenario is her son and in here we can see her deep flaws. Her relationship with her son was based on her sole need to not feel alone. She took him out of school right after his father passed away. All the while his relationship with her was one of him needing a mother, having felt abandoned while in that school all alone, which is why he still follows her around like a puppy even at this age.
There is a line in the movie where she says to her son: "seeing you (Malcolm) clarified some things for your father". (hunch) I think it clarified that he wasnt his son. This could only mean that she didnt love her husband which is why her husband never loved Malcolm and distanced himself from them both but didnt leave them (which is the reason Malcolm shouldnt hate his father).
In conclusion, this movie is worth a watch simply because as flawed as she was (and boy was she!), she lived life in her own terms while completely disregarding her impact over anyone else which I can only characterize as bold but incredibly damaging.
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