Isabelle Huppert is in mesmerising form as Nathalie, a philosophy teacher in her 60s withstanding a succession of hurtful losses and tempering a lifetime’s self-assurance with admirable composure.
“A wondrously assured look at a philosophy teacher going through what might be described as a mid-life crisis… were it not for the stoic fortitude and keen appetite for life with which she responds to whatever befalls her… Mia Hansen-Løve creates and sustains a light, delicate tone while never downplaying the difficulties of an unexpected, unwanted life-change. She’s helped enormously by a supremely witty, touching, utterly truthful performance by Isabelle Huppert.” - Geoff Andrew, Sight & Sound
"The film oozes with such effortless alchemy between director and actor that it’s hard to believe Mia Hansen-Løve, who also wrote the script, is not more advanced in years (the writer-director is still only 35)… Due in no small part to the strength of Huppert’s subtly emotive performance, the manner in which Nathalie simply carries on without carrying on (i.e. without suffering a total breakdown) is so refreshingly… female." - Emma Myers, Brooklyn
