Bastards

When he learns of his brother-in-law's suicide, Vincent Lindon returns to Paris to help sister Lola Creton through her grief and the financial mess her bankrupt husband has put her in. Lindon sets out to destroy the life of Creton's partner, the wealthy Subor, by wooing the mother of Subor's son, next door neighbour Bataille, as Lindon believes Subor is responsible for the current familial financial crisis. However, he is distracted by the mental state of his hospitalised niece, Mastroianni.

Disclaimer: all of the above is guesswork on my part as Denis, never one to one lay it all out, makes the audience do a lot of the heavy lifting. The director's style here is brave one, as the fragmented editing style can jar and confuse with the film jumping forward, assuming the audience can piece together the visual information. Sometimes that's easy – the man who was standing at the window gazing out into the rain is the body that now lies in the street under the blanket – and sometimes it's not. The jumping creates a tense curiosity – just what will the next scene bring? Something horrible more than likely.

While a Denis film was never a bastion of happiness Bastards sees her at her most depressing. Or angry – the title is almost spit. There is nowhere to escape the gloom. Even when characters aren't telling each other sob stories and the audience's worst fears are realised, the low-lit, sparsely decorated apartments and seedy streets tide one over. Despite the inclusion of a child (Creton's son) and the early jump forward of his bike found by police dogs, which poses all sorts of questions that Denis allows the audience to answer, Bastards remains deliberately emotionally distant. It's a tough film and harder to get into.

The running time is felt - only Denis could make eighty-three minutes feel twice that – but for the most part this is real engaging stuff. And as the film begins to wind up and Denis' masterful handle on the film begins to slip, the director manages to squeeze in one more surprise that will ruin your entire month. Regular Denis soundtrackers Tindersticks return with an unusual but brilliant cover of Hot Chocolate's Put Your Love In Me. Like the film itself it somehow works.