Director: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Writer: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne (Screenplay)
Starring: Marion Cotillard, Fabrizio Rongione, Catherine Salee, Baptiste Sornin, Pili Groyne
Plot: Liège, Belgium. Sandra is a factory worker who discovers that her workmates have opted for a EUR1,000 bonus in exchange for her dismissal. She has only a weekend to convince her colleagues to give up their bonuses in order to keep her job.
Runtime: 1 Hour 34 Minutes
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Powerful Performance Piece
Story: Two Days One Night starts As Sandra (Cotillard) a wife and mother gets informed by one of her close workmates Juliette (Salee) that her work colleagues were forced to vote on either their 1000 Euro bonus or keeping Sandra employed and all bar two picked the bonus.
Sandra has just the weekend to try and convince other members of the staff to switch their votes in a hope to keep her much needed job to keep the house her and her husband Manu (Rongione) have worked so hard for.
Thoughts on Two Days One Night
Characters – Sandra is a wife and mother that works in a factory, her life is changed when she learns her boss has given the staff a choice, have their bonus or keep her employed, suffering from stress and depression from this she is forced to into convincing the rest of the staff to vote for her, making her feel like a beggar something she never thought she would be put through. Manu is Sandra’s husband, he supports her through this difficult time, knowing she has fought hard to be in the job even with the added stress this will add to their relationship. We do get to meet the rest of the staff who have their own struggles when it comes to needing the bonus or not too.
Performances – Marion Cotillard is fantastic in this leading role, carrying the movie with her performance in every single scene. Fabrizio Rongione is wonderful too because his performance helps guide Sandra in the direction she needs while looking strong through the difficult time. The whole cast are brilliant here, giving a real feeling about everything that goes on through the film.
Story – The story follows one woman who is about to lose her job thanks to a vote, she has one weekend to try and convince the rest of the staff to support her in the vote as she battles her own stress and depression about this decision going on. This is a very interesting story, it could play out in any language, any country and in any career field which is why it makes it such a captivating story to watch unfold, because it asks you the question ‘how would you vote?’. This is yet again a wonderful but hard to watch drama that shows the importance of thinking about more than just yourself.
Settings – The film shows us the suburbs of Belgium where people work and struggle to make ends meet in an everyday situation.
Scene of the Movie – The Vote
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The idea feels illegal.
Final Thoughts – This is a powerful drama that does test the audience to look at themselves, the performances are fantastic throughout and this is a must watch for anyone who sees themselves as cinema fans.
Overall: Must watch for all.
Rating
