(06) A Christmas Tale

Directed by Arnaud Desplechin
Starring Catherine Deneuve and Mathieu Amalric
150 mins.
Rated R

Much like Bergman's Fanny and Alexander before it, A Christmas Tale is a sprawling epic about something that would normally be contained into a 80 minute indie flick. But director Arnaud Desplechin never shies away from making the film as long as he wants. I admit that it's hard to follow (I needed two viewings to digest the entire thing) but if you stick with it, the payoff is remarkable. Mathieu Amalric (Quantum of Solace, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) is particularly good as the unbelievably mean, nasty, chain-smoking uncle.