JULIA

Living part of the time in France I get to hear from films buffs at dinner parties, arguing about the latest earth shattering performance they have witnessed; what really good films are around, especially the old ones and a friend was raving about a French made movie called Julia with Tilda Swinton, someone I love. The film was made on 2008 so I missed it first time round and got a copy off this friend who recommended it. I have to say I was not really looking forward to it when I read the cover as it looked a little dated and violent but when I began to watch I was glued to my chair. Swinton plays an ageing alcoholic who is lonely sad and married to the bottle but she seems to have somewhere in there a big soft heart. She hooks up with another lonely women who has lost her little boy to his wealthy Grandfather after her husband dies. She ask the Swinton character to help kidnap her son for $50,000 and what transpires can only be described as hard hitting violent drunken mayhem. This movie really was a big surprise and kept me glued to the screen until the end. It was very touching in places and very painful in others as you really get to see how life can be destroyed by booze.

The film is surprisingly in English with French subtitles and won Swinton a best actress nomination for the Cesar Awards.