Grégoire Hetzel

Before he became one of the biggest names in blockbuster filmmaking, Denis Villeneuve scored an Oscar® nod for Best Foreign Language Film with this visceral thriller. Tracing the indelible scars of war across oceans and generations, Incendies is a globetrotting mystery of singular emotional power.

Arnaud Desplechin’s whirlwind dramedy doesn’t fully reject Christmas joy, but it does give the undersung holiday traditions of dysfunction and discomfort their time in the spotlight. Starring a formidable French cast, this festive film’s thorny exterior makes way for little glimmers of tender hope.