Detailing the life of a young woman coming to terms with her sexuality from her later school years into the start of her adult working life, Abdellatif Kechiche’s adaptation of Julie Maroh’s graphic novel has caused considerable controversy since it won the Palme d’Or at Cannes earlier this year, with complaints about the director’s working methods and the film’s intimate depiction of lesbian sex threatening to undermine it.

Yet beyond the furor, Blue is the Warmest Colour emerges as daring and brilliant, effectively evoking the pleasures of being in love and the pain of heartbreak while acknowledging the fragile line between those two states. (MH)

Winner: Palme d’Or, Official Competition, 2013
Winner: FIPRESCI Prize, 2013

Director’s Note: Kechiche’s adherence to realism through splendidly choreographed images of almost overwhelming intensity brings remarkable insight into the life of Adèle.

Blue is the Warmest Colour will also run throughout the Carte Noire IFI French Film Festival as part of the main IFI Programme.

This film is screening as part of the Abdellatif Kechiche Programme in the Carte Noire IFI French Film Festival (November 20th – December 1st 2013).