AFTER LOVE (L’ÉCONOMIE DU COUPLE) World Cinema

AFTER LOVE premiered in Directors’ Fortnight at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.
Joachim Lafosse returns to AFI FEST with his latest feature, which follows Marie and Boris, who have been married for 15 years, as they go through the emotional turmoil of divorce in full view of their twin daughters. At the center of the dispute is the house that Marie purchased and Boris completely renovated. Without a steady job, Boris can’t afford a place of his own and so the two must share the house while caring for their girls, which only continues to drag out the divorce proceedings. Staging the entire film in the house they once shared, Lafosse’s intimate, emotional movie allows his lead actors, Bérénice Bejo and Cédric Kahn, to give performances that really shine. AFTER LOVE looks at what it means to be a couple, while also exploring the dichotomy of two people who must figure out a way to peacefully coexist for their daughters. — Jenn Murphy