As regular followers of Mid Century Cinema know, we are enormous admirers of Olivier Assayas, who we count among the greatest living filmmakers. MCC has already featured this remarkable French auteur on several occasions, most notably with an overview in 2017, where we highlighted some favorite films and briefly contextualized his career. But that profile appeared almost exactly nine years ago—and much has happened since then, including, from Assayas, four additional feature films and one eight part miniseries. And in that intervening decade we also caught up with a few more of his movies that had previously escaped our grasp—indeed, this particular post is partly inspired by the fact that, through the magic of the grey market, we were recently able to secure a copy his otherwise unavailable third effort, Paris Awakens. This means that we’ve now seen every one of his features, with the exception of the ever elusive A New Life. Finally (and relatedly), in our 2017 overview we went with a Top 5; now, with Almost All of Assayas under our belt, we can dust off MCC’s signature star treatment of the entire oeuvre, which can be found below. It has been a while since we’ve starred someone, so recall that we deploy the Halliwell system, where stars are earned. Thus one star is a mark of real distinction, two stars reflect very high praise, and three stars—well, I’m almost speechless. This also means that “no stars” does not necessarily suggest a proverbial thumbs down—there are a vast number of very good movies out there that have simply not earned their stars, but are still eminently worth watching.
Assayas’ movies, if generally rooted in subtle, complex, interpersonal dramas, reflect a dramatic variation in nominal subject matter. These disparate efforts, however, often share some common underling motifs: the tensions between tradition and the pressures of swiftly changing times; the challenge of maintaining artistic integrity in the context of commercial imperatives; and youthfully inflected/coming of age stories steeped in an enmeshment with (and inplicit reverence for) rock music rarely seen this side of Scorsese. Remarkably, and of course appropriately given that Assayas shares the credo that cinema is about asking questions rather than providing answers, his movies never lecture—even when you might expect them to. In all cases – no wonder we love his movies – Assayas brings the ambiguity.
Early Efforts (1986 – 1993) Assayas’ first four features are of interest, and showcase a promising and developing talent. Disorder gestures at things to come, bringing an ambitious visual style complemented by a (somewhat) musical theme; we prefer this one to Winter’s Child, which boasts the interpersonal dramatic conflicts between characters that would become a staple, but it is telling that we found the minor figures here more interesting than the major players, whose motives seemed curious. Paris Awakens, in contrast, was a major step forward. Featuring fine performances from Judith Godrèche, Thomas Langmann and Jean-Pierre Léaud (what a thrill it must have been to land JPL for this movie), again the touchstones are there: very complex family dynamics (even by French standards), the denizens of youth culture (and attendant vices), much music, and more. What is most impressive about Paris Awakens is its maturity, and ability to avoid easy tropes. All three major characters – and several minor ones – seemed primed to fall for an obvious movie tragedy, yet the narrative deftly (and plausibly) sidesteps those there-for-the-picking lazy denouements. This movie flirted with a star in our summary below (all of the ratings err on the side of caution)—and I suspect this one might get an upgrade a second or third viewing. It certainly made us even more eager to track down A New Life.
Emerging Auteur (1994 – 2002) Over the next decade, with five very different features, Assayas would establish himself as a major director—especially with the first three entries here, which each representing a major step forward. Cold Water is the movie that put him on the map. A coming of age film – set in the early 1970s in a plainly if very loosely autobiographical way – it unfolds in three distinct movements (trouble at home, a bravura party sequence, and then flight—we saw hints of Five Easy Pieces in that last bit). I would note that others hold this film in higher esteem than we do (see, for example, J. Hoberman’s appreciation). But by any account, the impeccably curated dramatic integration of music in this one is as good as that gets. As for Irma Vep – I have no reservations. One of the greatest movies ever made about making movies, it is perhaps too easy but nevertheless fair to imagine this as the Day for Night of the 1990s. Having said that, although I love Day for Night—I love this one even more. It is edgier, and has more to say, and has the first of those spectacular “dinner with a large group of friends around a giant wooden table” that we so cherish. Maggie Cheung and Jean-Pierre Léaud lead an ensemble cast of an increasingly recognizable company of players that will populate future features.
Late August, Early September is Assayas’ first flat out masterpiece. Another ensemble piece; over the years I’ve come to see François Cluzet’s character as the fulcrum of a set of friendships, with all the other characters positioned by and associated with each other in ways that derive from their relationship with him. The ever marvelous Mathieu Amalric stands out as another principal player, but the gang’s all here, including Jeanne Balibar, Jean-Baptiste Malartre, and (future director) Mia Hansen-Løve, in a rich film that touches on almost every recognizably Assayas theme. Impeccably shot, it features ruminations on friendship and art and life, littered with smart, small observations and some jittery hand-held work that still yields finely crafted frame compositions. This was the movie that sent us searching for more.
Les Destinées Sentimentales would seem to suggest a radical departure for Assayas – and there is no denying that a graceful, three hour period piece is something of a change of pace, to say the least – but many of the sub-textual songs remain the same. Stretching across the decades from the 1890s through the 1930s, Destinées tells the story of two classically traditional family businesses (and the relationships between their members), shaken up a bit as, you know, times change. With Emmanuelle Béart, Charles Berling, and Isabelle Huppert, Assayas’ attention to detail, both of character and the hand crafted production processes of the family firms means that, as Roger Ebert put it, “It will not appeal to the impatient, but those who like long books and movies will admire the way it accumulates power and depth.”
Demonlover brings much of the regular band back together – plus Gina Gershon and Chloë Sevigny – for the first of Assayas’ wild, frenetic, globetrotting/globalization suspensers. The first two thirds of this movie – maybe even a bit more – register a Wow from us; we were blown away by the pace, and the layers upon layers of intrigue, and the narrative’s ability to keep so many balls in the air at once—maybe implausibly so, I increasingly speculated. But that mattered little, because at some point this movie just craters, and becomes egregiously unpleasant. As I have shared before, I once screwed up my courage and asked Assayas at a Q&A if he “went too far” with Demonlover. I expected to get a lecture on artistic risk taking. But instead I got a “Yes!”—followed by a long, rapid fire exposition on that notion. [NB: The one star below refers solely to the first seventy percent of this movie. The you should walk out.]
Top of the World (2004 – 2018) Staring with Clean, Assays embarked on an astonishing fifteen year run that established him as one of the great auteurs of our time. Some will balk at my placing him in the pantheon, but we count four masterpieces and four winners in this stretch – each very different, yet in every instance a recognizable expression of a singular style – and, sorry, but at that point you’re talking Hall of Fame. Clean, with Maggie Cheung and (an outstanding) Nick Nolte, is a revelation—in two ways. First, it is an original, and a masterpiece (we had some quibbles—so what?) Second, notes from our three screenings went from “this is very good” to “this is great” to “wow”—and those reactions are common for us. Every Assayas movie gets better with repeated viewings, which is one of the signs of a truly great filmmaker (and something to keep in mind if you find yourself less than gaga after a first viewing).
I can’t improve on my original assessment of Boarding Gate so I’ll just repeat it here: “a frenetic international thriller featuring Asia Argento as a kink-friendly woman continent-hopping on the run.” Along for the ride is Assayas regular Alex Descas and Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth; I would not think too hard about this one, but enjoy it as a very fine evening’s entertainment. The following year’s Summer Hours is as graceful as Boarding Gate is frantic. An interfamily drama about the relationship between three siblings after the death of the family matriarch (Edith Scob), Summer Hours offers a summary statement of all of Assayas’ thematic interests in 103 marvelous minutes. And, once again, the company players shine, including Juliette Binoche, Charles Berling and Dominique Reymond. A deeply moving film, its advocates are justly passionate—fistfights have broken out in the Mid Century Cinema screening room when I suggest that this is not Assayas’ greatest film. I’ve seen it five times, and it never disappoints.
The jaw-dropping Carlos offers yet another radical change of pace, and content (and is one of the very few Assayas films to be “inspired by actual events,” in this case a biopic about the titular, notorious seventies terrorist). In three parts across six hours – including one long, impossibly gripping set piece – Carlos moves effortlessly (and sure handedly) across nine countries and a very large gallery of well-drawn characters. You might think we are starting to get carried away with our praise, so let’s hand this over to Justin Chang: “Bravura narrative filmmaking on a hugely ambitious scale, Carlos is a spectacular achievement.”
After May (Something in the Air) is, with Cold Water, a re-visitation of the heady days of Assayas’ own youthful experiences. I find it the least distinguished film of this magnificent run – which means it’s pretty darn good – but I liked it much better on a second screening. (I was under too much pressure the first time around, having dragged a regular MCC reader to see it at the IFC Center, promising greatness.) There is much to engage with in this movie, but let’s move along to Clouds of Sils Maria, or, as I like to call it Clouds. Of. Sils. Maria. Full stop. The first time I saw it, I thought it was a “good movie”; the second time that was upgraded to “quite loved”; after the third, “wow . . . just outstanding . . . could be my favorite Assayas.” A few more screenings, a few more “wows”—I now rate Sils Maria as one of the best movies of the 2010s and I put in on my Sight and Sound All Time Top Ten ballot. Juliet Binoche is, of course, outstanding, but Kristen Stewart was, for me, a revelation. I’m not going to say any more, other than: see this now. But based on my notes, you’ll have to see it twice.
Apparently I was not the only one blown away by Stewart’s performance in Sils, Assayas’ next, Personal Shopper, seems to have been written expressly for her, and she carries this very fine film. Again breaking new ground (it’s partially a ghost story, not generally my bag), it is Assayas’ most Hitchcockian picture, though of course, that is a vehicle for much more than suspense; it is both engrossing and moving (my traveling companion insists that ultimately it is “a movie about grief”). In any event, Stewart soars, and takes the kind of chances that many actors would shy away from. Oh, and I liked it much more the second time. Which is also true of Double Lives (Non-Fiction), which was better still on a third viewing. Nominally about the publishing industry in the internet age, and other challenges of modernity and social media, it is mostly about the relationships between two enmeshed couples (Guillaume Canet, Juliette Binoche, Vincent Macaigne and Nora Hamzawi) and assorted affiliates. It is, easily, Assayas’ funniest film, which is also why it is easy to underestimate. I wrote about this one for Cineaste.
And Beyond (2019 – ) Assayas, now 71, shows an undiminished talent, a keen eye, a skilled hand, and the penetrating intelligence (and curiosity) of a master. It is the case that none of his more recent films achieves the heights of his greatest work, but that may be setting the bar unfairly high. Wasp Network is an excellent example of this. Featuring Penelope Cruz and
Edgar Ramírez (last seen as Carlos) and shot on location in Havana and Spain, this based-on-actual-events suspenser about intrigue and betrayal within the Cuban exile community plays very well, if inhibited by a lack of dramatic core. Irma Vep, the eight part mini-series, is a reimagination of the 1996 movie and is, in short, a blast. Alicia Vikander takes the lead role with another rollicking ensemble on board. Among the returning favorites, Lars Eidinger steals every scene he appears in. A quiet, stead presence on Sils Maria and Personal Shopper, here he turns it up to eleven – or possibly twelve – who knew. And Vincent Macaigne is again outstanding, here serving as the director’s alter ego. If you like this sort of thing, you will love this.
Suspended Time came and went without much notice (and it took a while to track down), but this quiet, lovely, pandemic-era rumination was clearly a deeply personal film. Vincent Macaigne (supported by Micha Lescot, Nora Hamzawi and Dominique Reymond) is something more than the director’s alter ego—at times the space between the actor and the director complexly vanishes, as when Assayas himself provides (quite moving) voiceover narration for Macaigne’s character. In contrast, we sniffed at The Wizard of the Kremlin (our notes say “middling Assayas”), which, despite the welcome presence of Alicia Vikander and fine turns by Jude Law and Jeffrey Wright, we found weighed down by exposition, a bit overstuffed, and somewhat undermined by a less than charismatic lead character and a curious ending. On the other hand, it got some very strong notices . . . and we’ve only seen it once.
The Films of Olivier Assayas
Disorder (1986)
Winter’s Child (1989)
Paris Awakens (1991)
A New Life (1993) NS
Cold Water (1994) *
Irma Vep (1996) **
Late August, Early September (1998) **/***
Les Destinees (2000) *
Demonlover (2002) *
Clean (2004) **/***
Boarding Gate (2007) *
Summer Hours (2008) ***
Carlos (2010) – Part 1** / Part 2*** / Part 3*
After May/Something in the Air (2012) *
Clouds of Sils Maria (2014) ***
Personal Shopper (2017) */**
Double Lives/Non-Fiction (2018) **
Wasp Network (2019)
Irma Vep/Mini Series (2022) *
Suspended Time (2024) *
The Wizard of the Kremlin (2025)