Incendies

AroView: Twin siblings, against their better judgment, dig deeper into the backstory of their recently deceased mother in this powerful French-Canadian tragi-drama.

Holding our attention through an expertly unraveled narrative, the film’s masterful storytelling packs a punch like few other movies in recent memory. As with the layer-rich, politically charged foreign dramas that have emerged of late, coincidences – and by extension, contrivances – are manipulated into the plot in such a way that will surely be a turn off for some. If constructed like a perfect mathematical equation though, there’s enough heavyweight emotion and incident here – not to mention a stunningly delivered revelation – to forgive the calculated direction and deliberateness of the slow reveal. Explosive, rewarding stuff.

“A wholly cinematic drama that combines twists and suspense with harrowing political insight.” ~David Parkinson, Radio Times