I've Loved You So Long

I've Loved You So Long (Il y a longtemps que je t'aime, 2008) is a French drama directed by Philippe Claudel — watch it online on iFILM. Kristin Scott Thomas plays Juliette, a woman walking out of prison after fifteen years, stepping into a life she barely recognises. Produced in France and Germany.

Her younger sister Léa agreed without hesitation to take her in, even though the two women have grown into strangers. Léa lives in Nancy with her husband Luc and two adopted daughters; Juliette moves through the household like a guest in a house she has no map for. She sits with social workers, applies for jobs, and says almost nothing about where she has been. The film withholds the reason for her imprisonment and lets it surface slowly, in fragments.

Elsa Zylberstein plays Léa — warm and watchful, trying to rebuild a bond that has been frozen for over a decade. Claudel, a novelist who wrote and directed the film, keeps the camera close and the score spare. Stream I've Loved You So Long (2008) in full on iFILM.