Alice and Louis do not just simply despise each other—the sound of the other person’s name is physically repulsive for them, and the siblings’ shared hatred for each other is far more intense than any exes with the ugliest breakups we’ve seen on screen. Arnauld Desplechin immediately shows us how deeply broken their relationship is in the opening scene. Even as Alice’s eyes are filled with tears at Louis’ doorstep as he mourns the death of his six-year-old son, she is still unable to speak directly to him and is asked to leave by her enraged brother.
Five years later, a deadly car accident sends their parents to the hospital. Both make it clear that they will not be at the hospital while the other is present. Through a series of flashbacks intercut with the present day, the audience gradually learns more about the siblings’ past and their irreconcilable differences, yet Desplechin isn’t interested in giving the audience the full picture. Jealously for each others’ career success seems to be a main source of hatred but surely not enough to justify such a tormented relationship. In the end, how the siblings ended up like this remains somewhat of a mystery, perhaps one that they themselves aren’t necessarily sure of either.
There are a few instances where the siblings almost meet in person, scenes of which you’d think may be from a horror film with its ominous background music and choppy editing. For a film that really goes the extra mile to show how much the two loathe each other (Alice literally faints at the sight of her brother from afar while walking towards their parents’ hospital room in one scene), their eventual encounter at a supermarket is surprisingly amicable. There is no loud screaming, throwing or glasses shattering unlike in their past arguments. Rather, their conversation is painfully short and heartbreaking to hear as Louis simply says to Alice “I think you’re my sister but I don’t recognize you”.
The film eventually ends with forgiveness. It’s perhaps a bit confusing why the film spends almost 2 hours building such an intense conflict only for it to be resolved almost effortlessly. I do not know if Alice and Louis are truly done holding grudges, but you’d want to believe they are as you see those two share a bed and joke with each other like young children again. I’m still not sure if I understand what the director is trying to say, but as I was leaving the theatre I had the four words “this too shall pass” in mind.