Adapted from François Mauriac’s novel of the same name, Claude Miller’s final film retells the story of provincial French life in the late 1920s with sombre beauty. Capturing the painterly quality of the vast pine forests of the Landes region the southwest, France, Thérèse Desqueyroux is a well-crafted drama of subtle charm.
The yellow brick road might look better than ever, but there’s no charm or substance here. The 3D facto does not add much to the experience and you will find yourself fidgeting and looking at your watches not long after we touch down in Oz.
The French auteur Francois Ozon has crafted a deftly intelligent character drama interwoven with a psychological thriller that works extremely well in the first two thirds before collapsing under the weight of expectation in its finale.