It’s Only The End Of The World

★★★☆☆

Dir: Xavier Dolan, 99 mins, starring: Nathalie Baye, Vincent Cassel, Marion Cotillard, Léa Seydoux, Gaspard Ulliel

Canadian wunderkind Xavier Dolan’s latest feature has a Chekhovian feel. Louis (Gaspard Ulliel), a famous young gay writer, returns home for the first time in 12 years. He is there to “announce” his death. He is suffering from a terminal illness. His arrival stirs up very mixed feelings among his family, who are completely unaware of his condition.

His mother (Nathalie Baye) and younger sister Suzanne (Lea Seydoux) are delighted to see him, the family is proud of his achievements but his brother Antoine (Vincent Cassel) is bitterly resentful of him. This is essentially a chamber piece, albeit a subtle and delicately crafted one. Adapted from Jean-Luc Lagarce’s play, it is almost entirely set within the family home. Dolan continually resorts to huge close-ups, often in slow motion, using these to register every small change in the characters’ expressions and emotions as they try to work out each others’ motivations.

Catherine (Marion Cotillard), Antoine’s wife, is terrified of boring their illustrious guest with her stories about her children. Suzanne is awestruck at Louis’ presence. She was so young when he left that she can barely remember him and knows him best from his elliptical postcards and articles. Antoine is simmering with anger and can hardly bear to look at his brother.

He thinks that Louis is on some glorified nostalgia trip – the great writer revisiting the provincial haunts of

his childhood, perhaps as research for a new play or article. There are some fine performances here, especially from Cotillard as the wide-eyed and naive sister-in-law and from the scowling Cassel. This may be a filmed play but Dolan’s graceful treatment of the material ensures that it rarely feels too stagy or claustrophobic.