Cannes 2023: Anatomy of a Fall

Justine Triet’s newest feature takes stylistic inspiration from her documentaries of the 2000s to create a work of fiction that's down-to-earth in terms of its narrative and characterisation. Sandra Hüller plays Sandra, a successful German novelist living in the French Alps with her husband, Samuel (Samuel Theis), who's also an author, and their ten-year-old son, Daniel (Milo Machado Graner), who's partially sighted. We're first introduced to Samuel as the heavy timbre of 50 Cent’s P.I.M.P. blares through the house on a loop. The music is so disruptive that Sandra has to cut short an interview she's having in another room and we become immediately aware of her husband's ominous presence within the household.

Later, P.I.M.P. continues to echo from the alpine chalet when Daniel stumbles upon the bloody body of his father laying dead in the snow. As police arrive at the scene, Sandra quickly finds she is no longer a wife in mourning but instead a suspect on trial for the murder. What unfolds is the story of a woman who must grapple with her husband’s death while defending herself against the seemingly absurd allegations that she is responsible for his demise. The result is a courtroom drama that completely spins the genre on its head.

The focus of Anatomy of a Fall isn't on the crime but on its characters. As the film progresses, it becomes clear that Sandra and Samuel are far from the perfect couple. Sandra feels isolated living in Samuel’s hometown, having to get by in French, a language in which she is not fluent. Samuel, meanwhile, has struggled to find inspiration for his own writing and instead has taken responsibility for home-schooling Daniel, whose impaired vision is due to an accident that Sandra blames Samuel for, in part.

The couple’s acrimony makes for a complicated court case. Sandra and her representatives must defend her honour as the prosecutor uses Sandra's own writing as evidence of motivation to murder, while also proving that Samuel's fall was a result of suicide. It's a narrative that's tricky to prove, given that Daniel, the sole eyewitness, is practically blind. Machado Graner is heartbreaking in the role, aptly capturing the complexity and emotional distress of both discovering his father's dead body and being a driving factor in determining his mother’s fate.

Triet's screenplay, which she wrote with Arthur Harari, is razor-sharp. At first, it appears Sandra is in some way responsible for her husband's death but thanks to Triet’s intricate direction and the cast's compelling performances – especially on the part of Hüller – Anatomy of a Fall is much more complex, delving into themes of resentment, sexuality and the trials of modern relationships. Ambiguity is maintained throughout, making for a compelling watch but also a realistic portrait of human nature.

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Anatomy of a Fall had its world premiere at Cannes Film Festival and will be released in the UK later in 2023 by Picturehouse Entertainment