I've Loved You So Long (2008)
"Il y a longtemps que je t'aime" (original title)

A woman struggles to interact with her family and find her place in society after spending fifteen years in prison.

Director:

Philippe Claudel

Writer:

Philippe Claudel

Stars:

Kristin Scott Thomas, Elsa Zylberstein, Serge Hazanavicius

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 14 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kristin Scott Thomas	...	Juliette Fontaine
Elsa Zylberstein	...	Léa
Serge Hazanavicius	...	Luc
Laurent Grévill	...	Michel (as Lauren Grevill)
Frédéric Pierrot	...	Capitaine Fauré
Claire Johnston	...	La mère de Juliette et Léa
Catherine Hosmalin	...	La conseillère d'insertion
Jean-Claude Arnaud	...	Papy Paul
Olivier Cruveiller	...	Gérard
Lise Ségur	...	P'tit Lys (as Lise Segur)
Mouss	...	Samir (as Mouss Zouheyri)
Souad Mouchrik	...	Kaisha
Nicole Dubois	...	La DRH hôpital
Laurent Claret	...	Directeur hôpital
Marcel Ouendeno	...	Bamakalé

Storyline

Juliette was 15 years in prison. Confronted with the unexpected goodness of her younger sister Léa, who makes Juliette a part of her family, very slowly breaks up Juliette's ice and bitterness and she carefully opens up.

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Plot Keywords:

prison | doctor | visit | death | colleague | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic material and smoking

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [jp] Official site [uk]

Country:

France Germany

Language:

French English

Release Date:

19 March 2008 (France)

Also Known As:

I've Loved You So Long

Filming Locations:

Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$64,731 (USA) (24 October 2008)

Gross:

$3,167,876 (USA) (17 April 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

UGC YM, Integral Film, France 3 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The note written by Juliette's dead son, which Lea finds by accident, reads: "un jardin sous la plui sé doux triste come moi san toit maman je veus pas que tu meure jamai on sera ensemble toujour tu ai mon amour ton petit Pierre" (A garden under the rain is sweet sad like me without you Mama I don't want you to die ever. We'll be together always. You are my love. Your little Pierre.)

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Quotes

Juliette Fontaine: The worst prison is the death of one's child. You never get out of it.

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Connections

Featured in The Orange British Academy Film Awards (2009)

User Reviews

Wonderful

Just had the pleasure of seeing this movie in a cinema and I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

The movie touches several very sensitive subjects in a careful and a non-judging way; it left me thinking deeply about the rules of our society, and what happens if one falls through the raster; if what one has done does not fit into the view of the majority and one's actions are not compatible with the rules that society has given itself.

There are scenes that made me laugh, others leaving me absorbed in thought, all the while realising: this is life as it is, sometimes wonderful, sometimes brutal and sad.

The acting is brilliant in my view, the film lives from Kristin Scott Thomas and Elsa Zylberstein, both seem to be made for the characters they play while the rest of the cast, even for the smallest part, seems to have been carefully picked as well. Both actors and director describe the making of the movie as a very interesting experience, something I don't doubt at all after seeing it.

If you get a chance to see the movie, do it. It's worth it.