Marion Cotillard’s Oscar-nominated performance highlights the latest film from the Palme d’Or winning Dardenne Brothers, Jean-Pierre and Luc (Rosetta and L’enfant). While distinctly French, this story of Sandra, a young wife and mother desperately clinging to her job in the aftermath of a medical crisis, translates into the language of every post-industrial nation.
On the eve of returning to work after a bout with depression, Sandra learns her coworkers have voted for a significant bonus at the cost of her job. After convincing her boss to allow a second vote, Sandra has a weekend to convince a majority of the 16 workers to vote for her, rather than for themselves.
Many of her coworkers are a misanthropic dream. Their rationalizations that they “need” their bonuses more than she needs her job ring selfish and hollow, and are especially stinging from those she thought were friends.
The Xanax-popping Sandra is sometimes her own worst advocate, as her depression constantly looms over her. Silence and tears are never far from her surface. The Dardennes provide Cotillard with a complex character, who goes from sympathetic to self-pitying in an instant. It is all her husband, Manu (Fabrizio Rongione), can do to keep her from retreating to the safety of her pills and bed. Yet the strength of enduring this difficult experience is the very best medicine for Sandra. For every “no” vote, there is a tear-ridden, apologetic “yes.” A tough morality play to watch, Two Days, One Night tweaks emotions with intellectual sincerity and an ultimately rewarding view of our shared humanity.
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