Martin (Ben Whishaw) and Tomas (Franz Rogowski) are a married couple, both seemingly gay. However, their relationship is put in jeopardy when Tomas starts an affair with Agathe (Adèle Exarchopoulos).
There is plenty to admire in Ira Sachs’ latest film. Whishaw and Exarchopoulos are excellent and Sachs’ script, written with Mauricio Zacharias and Arlette Lagmann is quite insightful at times. There is one particularly good scene when Tomas meets Agathe’s parents.
However, to fully engage with the story, Tomas would need to be charming and charismatic, at least on the surface. Instead, he is a shallow, narcissistic bully, so it is hard to understand why the sweet and sensitive Martin or the perceptive and beautiful Agathe would put up with his behaviour.
As he constantly flits from one to the other, professing his love to them, it became a frustrating watch, especially as Agathe’s character becomes increasingly side-lined.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10