Disorder

This French drama/thriller looks sleek and is backed by fascinatingly immersive music but it does take perhaps too long to kick into gear. Thankfully Matthias Schoenaerts is on hand with his knack of delving into mysterious and silently powerful roles.

Vincent (Matthias Schoenaerts) is a soldier not likely returning to the field of action due to suffering post traumatic stress disorder. He fills his time with odd jobs and thanks to a friend gets called up to be security for Jessie (Diane Kruger), the wife of an important businessman. Matthias Schoenaerts is the man for silently brooding men; he plays the damaged and shaky side of a former soldier well. Diane Kruger isn’t around much but is a convincing glamorous mother with bite and gets trawled through by the actions of Vincent.

Alice Winocour’s directing certainly strikes the right chords in building palpable tension. The whole time we never know what or who may be around the corner. It’s not quite a masterpiece in rattling our bones but it comes extraordinarily close as we see Jessie’s luxury villa become a hunting ground of shadows and paranoia.

This movie uses silence brilliantly to keep things suspenseful. The story itself, by Winocour and Jean-Stephane Bron, isn’t much more than guy protecting a woman. The simplicity of the story helps in places because it means we can sweat it out amongst the moody tension but it crumbles in the more action-y home invasion final act.

Disorder made me restless because for the first thirty minutes or so nothing much goes down. Sure it introduces characters and lays out the scene, but it isn’t until a beach date that the truly dangerous nature of this film’s atmosphere begins to take shape. Also the aforementioned utilisation of silence offers no connection between Vincent and Jessie leading to following scenes devoid of any interest.