La question humaine (2007)

A psychologist discovers troubling links between Nazism and modern-day big business.

Director:

Nicolas Klotz

Writers:

François Emmanuel (story), Elisabeth Perceval

Stars:

Mathieu Amalric, Michael Lonsdale, Edith Scob

6 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Mathieu Amalric	...	Simon
Michael Lonsdale	...	Mathias Jüst
Edith Scob	...	Lucy Jüst
Lou Castel	...	Arie Neumann
Jean-Pierre Kalfon	...	Karl Rose
Valérie Dréville	...	Lynn Sanderson
Laetitia Spigarelli	...	Louisa
Delphine Chuillot	...	Isabelle
Nicolas Maury	...	Tavera
Rémy Carpentier	...	Jacques Paolini
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Abtmalt
Solène Agobert
Louis Aguettant	...	Le chanteur de fado
Nassim Amaouche
Marie-Reine Beaumesnil

Storyline

Paris today. Simon works as psychologist in human resources department of petrochemical corporation. When Management gets him to investigate one of the factory's executives, Simon'perception goes disturbingly chaotic and cloudy. The experience affects his body, his mind, his personal life and his sensibility. The calm assurance that made him such a rigorous technician starts to falter.

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Plot Keywords:

psychologist | nazism | corporation | illegal immigration | voice over narration | 

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Genres:

Drama | History | Music | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

12 September 2007 (France)

Also Known As:

The Human Question

Filming Locations:

Le Mans, Sarthe, France

Box Office

Budget:

€600,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,309, 16 March 2008, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$5,309, 16 March 2008

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sophie Dulac Productions,Centre National de la Cinématographie (CNC),CinéCinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

143 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Les amants cinéma (2008)

User Reviews

I wish more people would see this.

A highly intelligent, interesting film that does a great job of showing the impact that the ripples of Nazi Germany still have on the modern world. It's half a study of that, half a character study of Mathieu Amalric's character, a psychologist for a large, anonymous company. This character is completely breaking down throughout the film as a result of living in such a shady, paranoia filled society. I have to admit that there is some stuff that went over my head. There's a subplot involving an almost underground society of these business types who take these boats to a place where they pop drugs and rave. I'm sure that the whole thing has a symbolic meaning but for me it just provided a stunning catharsis and more depth into Amarlic's character. His performance in the film is absolutely stunning. It's a very quiet, subtle portrayal that is one of the most...calculated performances I've seen in quite a while. You can tell that he put so much thought into every move that the character makes. Every turn of the body, slight movement of the eyes, it's all important for the performance. But the genius of him as an actor is that you realize he is putting importance into all of those moments, but he is so great at putting himself into the character that you just think it's important for the character and don't think about the man acting as the character until after the film is over. A very intelligent, complex performance in an intelligent, complex film.