In what could be seen as a reply to the saccharine sweet (but oh-so-enjoyable) Paris, Je t’Aime, comes Inside Paris (Dans Paris), another film about relationships in the ‘city of love,’ but with a far rawer, and far more emotionally affecting, perspective. It opens with a series of twisting scenes depicting a disintegrating relationship. Capturing moments of aggression, heartbreak, thoughtfulness and regret, these scenes contort notions of reality in such a manner that audience members have no choice but to resign themselves entirely to the film’s relentless force and the confused nature of its storyline (and thus the confused nature of the protagonist’s mind.) This section forms a prelude to the remainder of the film, in which we see the main character Paul (Louis Garrel) leaves his girlfriend to live with his well meaning but confused father (Guy Marchland) and his hedonistic brother (Louis Garrel,) where he begins his journey out of depression.

The critics are celebrating Christophe Honore’s film for its distinctly “unpretentious” nature – if anything, this film is absolutely pretentious, and its jazzy soundtrack, poignant dialogue and twisting narrative attest to this. This, however, is not necessarily a bad thing, because this film’s pretentiousness nature is what gives it that distinctly French charm, without at all subtracting from the complexity of the characters and their healing processes. This film remains a thought provoking dive into the heart of depression, where anger, apathy and anxiety fight for dominance, and its pretentious sheen does in no way affect the film’s power to enthral and intrigue.

Rating: 7.0