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When it comes to filling out the ballot for our annual Oscar pool, I often get stuck on the Best Foreign Language Film category. By that time, I’ve seen most of the English-language features—but the foreign films don’t typically get released in the States until after the ballots have been counted. For that category, then, I’m usually forced to rely on buzz. This year, I couldn’t help but take note of the heavily-buzzed French Canadian drama, Incendies (which eventually lost the Oscar to Susanne Bier’s In a Better World). And now that I’ve (finally) seen it, I can confirm that this hauntingly mysterious drama is worthy of its buzz.
After their mother dies, twins Jeanne and Simon Marwan (Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin and Maxim Gaudette) discover that they’ve inherited a mystery. Their mother’s will directs them to deliver letters to a father they thought was dead and a brother they never knew existed. Simon refuses, claiming that their mother was crazy—but Jeanne chooses to travel from Canada to their mother’s Middle Eastern home in search of clues that will piece the story together.
What Jeanne finds there isn’t what she expects. Instead of being welcomed by friends and family who share fond memories of a younger Nawal (Lubna Azabal), she’s thrown out of homes by women who speak of her mother’s disgrace. But as she begins to uncover more clues, she also begins to uncover the remarkable truth about her mother—and herself.
Based on the play Scorched by Wajdi Mouawad, Incendies is a poignant and mysterious drama about the horrors of war and the power of a mother’s love. The film follows two women on two very different journeys. Jeanne travels through dusty desert villages and deserted prisons in search of answers—and to give her late mother the closure that she could never obtain for herself. Meanwhile, the film often shifts its focus back in time to tell Nawal’s story, following the journey to find her beloved son, which eventually leads her into the midst of war. It’s a compelling story—one that’s both horrifying and moving, eerie and beautiful.
At times, though, the story can be somewhat difficult to follow. Especially in the beginning, it’s sometimes hard to tell Nawal and Jeanne apart—and as the stories switch back and forth without warning, it might take you a while to figure out which character you’re following. At the same time, some of the details of the war are a bit hazy, and it isn’t always easy to keep track of the sides (or who’s on which side).
Still, despite a few slight distractions, Incendies is an engrossing film—one that will easily hold your attention through the lengthy 130-minute runtime. It’s a twisting, turning, and surprising mystery, and director Denis Villeneuve does an excellent job of building the characters and making you care about them. It’s so captivating, in fact, that you’ll be almost as eager as Jeanne is to put the pieces together—and you’ll be just as stunned as she is when you learn the truth.
Incendies is more than just a beautiful foreign drama, with gorgeous cinematography and an emotional story. It’s also a quietly haunting mystery with a shocking conclusion. It may not have won the Oscar, but this buzz-worthy nominee is still worth seeking out.
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