Private Fears in Public Places

Private Fears in Public Places (Cœurs, 2006) is a French-Italian drama by Alain Resnais available to watch online on iFILM. Six Parisians move through a grey winter city, each looking for closeness and finding mostly habit, avoidance and bad timing.

A discharged soldier (Lambert Wilson) is quietly unravelling while his fiancée looks away. An estate agent (André Dussollier) is in love with his colleague Charlotte (Sabine Azéma), who slides her Bible into a drawer whenever someone might see it. His younger sister (Isabelle Carré) keeps showing up to blind dates with a flower pinned on her jacket. A patient bartender tends an angry, bedridden father who makes every hour of care feel earned the hard way.

Adapted from Alan Ayckbourn's play, the film claimed the Silver Lion for Best Direction at Venice 2006. Resnais keeps the six threads from ever quite touching — the missed connections feel close enough to ache. Watch Private Fears in Public Places (2006) online on iFILM.