MON ROI (2015)

Genre: Romance/Drama
Director: Maïwenn
Cast: Vincent Cassel, Emmanuelle Bercot, Louis Garrel, Isild Le Besco, Chrystèle Saint Louis Augustin
Runtime: 2 hrs 8 mins
Rating: M18 (Sexual Scenes)
Released By: Shaw 
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 5 May 2016

Synopsis: Tony is admitted to a rehabilitation center after a serious ski accident. Dependent on the medical staff and pain relievers, she takes time to look back on a turbulent relationship that she experienced with Georgio. Why did they love each other? Who is this man that she loved so deeply? How did she allow herself to submit to this suffocating and destructive passion? For Tony, a difficult process of healing is in front of her, physical work may finally set her free…

Movie Review:

(No) thanks to a recent series of personal encounters, this reviewer has been on a somewhat emotional roller coaster of sorts. It has also become rather apparent to him that each and every one of us has a different emotional threshold, and each and every one of us has a breaking point. When is the right moment to cry out for help? Well, again it differs. Is there a right, or in some perspectives, best time to seek solace by voicing out your anguish? As clichéd as it sounds, this writer is of the opinion that there’s no correct or wrong answer to this.

But this may also be the reason why the opening sequence of this French film spoke to this columnist. We see the female protagonist a skiing accident that eventually requires her to see a physiotherapist. Alas, it wasn’t an accident, but some sort of a cry for help, which most people would conveniently regard as a suicide attempt.

As the film progresses, we find out that she has been in a love hate relationship with a man for more than 10 years. She tries to tame this man whose very rougheness attracted her in the first place. There are some rough patches, and from a third person’s point of view, you wonder why she has to go through so much pain if she is supposed to be in love. The irony of the situation is that she is confined to the limited space during her therapy at the rehabilitation centre, where she connects with other physically damaged individuals, and realises what true love is. Yup, it’s one of those life changing moments you’ve always read about – how the physical pain does a greater job of healing your soul.

Actor turned writer director Maïwenn would emphatise best with the female protagonist. She gave birth to a daughter 1993 with husband Luc Besson, when she was 16 years old. When she turned 20, she starred in Besson’s The Fifth Element, during which he left her for the film's star, Milla Jovovich. Maïwenn would then later have a son with her second ex-husband, a real estate developer. Some life she’s had, we hear you say.

Running at 128 minutes, you feel the agony, hurts and ache our heroine goes through – though you feel that the story is heading towards nowhere at times. But hey, isn’t that part of this thing called life where we meander and wander, searching for some sort of goal while experiencing different sort emotions along the way?

For bringing such a real character to life, lead actress Emmanuelle Bercot was recognised at last year’s Cannes Film Festival with a Best Actress accolade. She is excellent in showing audiences how someone can be hopelessly indulgent in a passionate yet destructive relationship. Most amazing thing is, she makes us realise we have all been there before. Also exercising his charm is Vincent Cassel (whom we are familiar with because of his performances in Hollywood and British productions like Black Swan and Trance), who plays the rich restaurateur with an influential circle of friends, but also has serious commitment issues, drug problems and personal debts.

There are real problems in life, and it often takes a film like that for us to realise that there is much s*** to handle the moment you walk out of the cinema.

Movie Rating:

(Stellar performances from Emmanuelle Bercot and Vincent Cassel make this painful reminder on life's illogical take on love an engaging watch)  

Review by John Li