"Cannes 2010 was the year of Juliette Binoche. She graced the Festival’s poster; then she took the Best Actress Award for her role in this tantalising film. She plays a nameless woman who lives with her son in the south of Tuscany. British author James Miller arrives to promote his book, also entitled Certified Copy, a treatise about originality and copies in art and in life. She’s a journalist who writes about books and offers to take him on a tour to a nearby village so they can talk." (New Zealand International Film Festival 2010)
Relatively unknown giant of world cinema, Abbas Kiarostami, ventures outside of his native Iran for a romantic drama in his signature elegant style. A word of warning – this means a slow and deeply cerebral approach not conducive to popcorn munching or a light-hearted first date. If that doesn’t dissuade you, read on.
Kiarostami’s aesthetic sense is one that values immaculate framing over technical flash and it pays off here, allowing the typically picturesque Tuscan setting to fully express the rustic still-life beauty for which it’s famed. More importantly, it centres the attention squarely on the two leads and their relationship.
In this gracefully understated setting, Juliette Binoche delivers an acting master class. She delivers dialogue in English, Italian and French, and gives the film a humane core that could’ve been lost in some of the more academic stanzas. The final scene definitely doesn’t fall into that category; a heartbreaker that finishes on one of the best onscreen metaphors you could hope for.
It’s interesting that Certified Copy should be released the same week as Blue Valentine. In a sense, it’s the middle-aged, middle-class and European version of that story. In its own muted way, it’s just as powerful, too.
By Andreas Heinemann, Flicks.co.nz
Boring, slow. Great acting from it's lead. But this movie fell over because it just wasn't a movie. Usually there is a beginning, middle and end. This movie was an expanded middle. And not even a complete middle. The use of long sequences of filming must make editing a breeze but doesn't work for me as a viewer. My wife and I thought this was a film not worth seeing. Disappointed.
She's brilliant and so watchable, making this movie. Its funny, intense, and mysterious. The questioning of reality is at times confusing, so that keeps you on your toes. Beautiful backdrops. Nice but not must-see movie.
An exceptional film that plays with what is real and what is imagination. While exploring language and communication, this drama is both funny and intense.
Binoche has a chance to display her noteworthy gifts as a comedienne, switching effortlessly from English to French and Italian to build a character that is resentful, manipulative and seductive all at once.
Enigmatic and enchanting
Abbas Kiarostami’s first European outing is elegant, playfully cerebral and – after recent austere ventures – surprisingly accessible.
More compelling as an intellectual exercise than an emotional one, Certified Copy finds deep-thinking writer-director Abbas Kiarostami asserting there's nothing new under the Tuscan sun, particularly not his own conventional romantic drama set in rural Italy.
We've been told the NZ release date for this flick is Thursday, 10th Mar 2011.
Release date: March 10th 2011.
We haven't received times for this movie in this location yet. However these are updated as cinemas announce them, so check back soon. Hopefully the lovely cinemas in your location will choose to play it shortly. ~Ed.
