I've Loved You So Long
Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: October 24, 2008
7.6
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 47 Ratings
USER RATING DISTRIBUTION
Positive:
36
Mixed:
5
Negative:
6
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User Reviews

User scoreBy dateMost helpful
10
MeanJoeGreenMar 24, 2013
Riviting & exquisitely performed! This film is a love story that puts on display a stunning tour de force performance by the two female leads. Their interplay is more than worth the price of admission alone, and the supporting cast ringsRiviting & exquisitely performed! This film is a love story that puts on display a stunning tour de force performance by the two female leads. Their interplay is more than worth the price of admission alone, and the supporting cast rings just as true. Their tale of love & redemption is familiar, but never done better, & without any cliches or film noir tricks to dress it up. I have never seen a film depicting the enduring love of a family member for a sibling as well as this bittersweet tale. The masterful craftsmanship of everyone involved is blessedly on display in ample abundance. Moving, heartfelt, inspirational & profound with scenes that will stay with you for a long time. Go ahead, treat yourself to a viewing (or several).… Expand
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
All this user's reviews
4
DonaldWApr 18, 2009
Boring, depressing, and lots of smoking. What a combination.
0 of 1 users found this helpful
10
GeorgeK.Jan 8, 2009
Scott Thomas' performance is one that few, if any, Hollywood actresses could have delivered. It is thing of beauty from first to last, abetted by a director with a novelist's touch. An actress who can perform in both English and Scott Thomas' performance is one that few, if any, Hollywood actresses could have delivered. It is thing of beauty from first to last, abetted by a director with a novelist's touch. An actress who can perform in both English and French, Thomas uses silence, subtle facial movements, and her entire body to document a mother's return to life after the death of her child.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
DeanB.Feb 25, 2009
Magnificent central performances and wonderfully composed imagery ensure that this mystery-tinged tragi-drama is genuinely moving. My top film of 2008.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
1
JMaleMar 16, 2009
Horrible. I thought this movie would never end.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
JayH.Mar 5, 2009
Sensitively acted, particularly by Kristin Scott Thomas. Very well written, evenly paced and the characters a so richly developed. Always interesting. Nicely done.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
1
BobTMay 2, 2009
What a completely implausible, unrealistic tale. Why would any one not admit the true motive for such an act - love based euthanasia unless they were totally pathologically masochistic and equally totally inconsiderate of their family's What a completely implausible, unrealistic tale. Why would any one not admit the true motive for such an act - love based euthanasia unless they were totally pathologically masochistic and equally totally inconsiderate of their family's feelings? Why wouldn't any one have arrived at the most obvious,and reasonable explanation? If you like a melodramatic weeper this film should float your boat. Of course Kristin is very easy on the eyes, even when morbid of visage as is mostly here .… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
KenLDec 27, 2008
Great performance from Kristin Scott-Thomas. She does a terrific job as her character evolves over the course of the movie. Pain and suffering she displays without saying a word, and yet she demonstrates an unfiltered directness when she Great performance from Kristin Scott-Thomas. She does a terrific job as her character evolves over the course of the movie. Pain and suffering she displays without saying a word, and yet she demonstrates an unfiltered directness when she does speak. Although she is center stage, the rest of the cast is excellent as well. The plot may have some weaknesses, but they are easy to overlook in this powerful film.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
KatieFeb 22, 2009
one of my favorite movies! Kristin Scott Thomas is amazing... end of story!!!
0 of 0 users found this helpful
3
RyeCMar 11, 2009
A generally slow drama that never pays off. I was really surprised to see the praise for Kristin Scott Thomas. I found her performance to be that of a one trick pony. She's detached and uncomfortable with life the whole movie. With the A generally slow drama that never pays off. I was really surprised to see the praise for Kristin Scott Thomas. I found her performance to be that of a one trick pony. She's detached and uncomfortable with life the whole movie. With the exception of a couple scenes, she doesn't need to show much range. This movie wasn't a bad story it just didn't move me and that may be due to the two hour runtime. This really should have been a short film or at least under 80 minutes. Pass on this one unless you enjoy the feeling of watching paint dry while watching films.
… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
LindaPMar 27, 2009
A beautiful story of love and trust between sisters.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
AndrewMay 16, 2009
Linda L's review below captures my thoughts, though it's not a "10" to me. The film is all about KST's character's awakening after walling herself off for a couple decades. It's about life unfolding slowly around her Linda L's review below captures my thoughts, though it's not a "10" to me. The film is all about KST's character's awakening after walling herself off for a couple decades. It's about life unfolding slowly around her as she begins to live. It's about the forbearance of family. The inability to forgive and understand. The callousness of narcissists. About life in general as we live it, with an extraordinary catalytic event at the center of the script. Good stuff, IMO. Enjoyed it.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
HabsB.Nov 24, 2008
Tour-de-force smoldering performance from Miss Scott-Thomas. Excellent support from ELSA Zylberstein. Deeply affecting story.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
EdM.Dec 14, 2008
Good acting, yes, but enduring a slow, drawn out development of what was, for me, a not very interesting story just to see various ways emotions can be repressed and then released, wasn't worth the time.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
4
SteveHDec 23, 2008
This is not the movie the crtics would like you to believe. The movie is a a pure character study and acting demonstration by Thomas. The plot and climax are a let down. There are also many unneccesary scenes which makes the film about 30 This is not the movie the crtics would like you to believe. The movie is a a pure character study and acting demonstration by Thomas. The plot and climax are a let down. There are also many unneccesary scenes which makes the film about 30 minutes too long. If you love acting and subtitles, you are in for a treat, otherwise wait for the video.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
TonyO.Jan 18, 2009
Drags on a bit. Some nice acting (and not just from Scott-Thomas) but this sort of thing has actually been done before, and better eg The Woodsman. And the basic premise was pretty silly. Educated woman does jail time for killing her child, Drags on a bit. Some nice acting (and not just from Scott-Thomas) but this sort of thing has actually been done before, and better eg The Woodsman. And the basic premise was pretty silly. Educated woman does jail time for killing her child, but cannot bring herself to tell anyone (including her own family and ex-husband) why she did it - not that anyone cared very much, apparently. Cue lots of sighs, moody introspection, querulous looks by shocked strangers and insensitive males, and ultimately some tearful emotional revelations with her sister. About as realistic as Transformers. If it wasn't French, it would assuredly be on Hallmark. But even so, worth idling away some time on.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
LindaLMar 22, 2009
Brilliantly acted, deeply moving. Admittedly, there's not a big American-movie-style payoff, that moment when, say, Julia Roberts goes into raving hysterics and that vein on her forehead stands out. The beauty of Kristin Scott Brilliantly acted, deeply moving. Admittedly, there's not a big American-movie-style payoff, that moment when, say, Julia Roberts goes into raving hysterics and that vein on her forehead stands out. The beauty of Kristin Scott Thomas's performance is in the way she slowly, gradually emerges from the frozen awfulness of her crime & punishment, and starts to become a feeling person again. The sister's determination to help her is moving, too.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
PaulDApr 11, 2009
Terrific novelistic movie with a superb central performance and vivid supporting characters. Kristin Scott Thomas elevates the movie above melodrama with her complex, subtle, multi-layered protrayal of a woman who is released from prison Terrific novelistic movie with a superb central performance and vivid supporting characters. Kristin Scott Thomas elevates the movie above melodrama with her complex, subtle, multi-layered protrayal of a woman who is released from prison after 15 years for a seemingly horrible crime. Claudel provides strong direction with an emphasis on the little details that make all the difference in keeping the viewer hooked. Some people may find it a little slow, but I think this is primarily because most American movies seem to have been made for an audience with the attention span of a gnat. If Thomas doesn't receive an Academy Award nomination, there is no justice.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
ErickSJul 27, 2009
A sad, beautiful film featuring a heart-rending performance by Scott Thomas. Nuanced and subtle, yet intense and compelling.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
JenLSep 12, 2009
Unlike some of the critics, I didn't feel cheated by the end of the movie. I'm not sure what kind of ending would have satisfied them. Anyway, it was a very good movie - I didn't get bored at all watching it, which is rare.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
3
Erik_ImsenJan 30, 2013
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A movie that turns out extremely disappointing when it fails delivering what it promised. My two main areas of complaints are the characters' total lack of realism and the final explanation -why was Scott Thomas in jail- that ultimately does not make any sort of sense and thus ruins the entire build-up, in other words, the entire film.

The characters are stereotypical breathing cliches. - Zylberstein who feels guilty for turning her back on her sister when incarcerated justifies her actions by her youth, stating that her parents ordered her to forget she ever had a sister. Which could have been believable if we did not learn later in the film that she was a teenager when her sister was sent to jail. An age at which you can hardly be brainwashed by your parents.
- Zylberstein's husband, portrayed by Serge Hazanavicius, is the sum of all possible cliches, so two dimensional he turns out flatter than a pancake. Sure the role was very poorly written, but with his over-the-top animosity towards Scott Thomas, Hazanavicius doesn't manage to save the day. It even gets to the point of being laughable when he accidentally dislocates his shoulder and M.D.-prior-to-be-incarcerated Scott Thomas snaps it back into place, thus enlightening him about Scott Thomas true nature and allowing their relationship to improve from now on.
- Scott Thomas' probation officer screams "loneliness" so hard to the screen that you almost expect him to beg for free hugs at a later scene. I suppose he was designed to be some sort of a pressure relief to Scott Thomas, and their regular meetings that quickly moved from his office to cafes are here to show us he is different from other probation officers. His endless speeches about the places he'd like to travel to are here to create a poetic note, and have Scott Thomas' mind travel with his, around a drink. But again the poor execution turns him into a joke, and their scenes into wasted film.

I won't go any further into characters, as I have stated what bothered me most, and shall move to the second part: the whole thing doesn't make sense.

We learn rather quickly that Scott Thomas went to jail for 15 years, which puts "murder" high up on the list of probable crimes committed, only to learn soon afterwards that she was convicted of murder on the person of her son.
It is by the end of the film that we actually get to know why, as her sister confronts her after she finds out: her son was sick with a terrible, horribly painful and incurable disease. The murdering of her son was actually an act of euthanasia.
And this is where I fell off my chair. Why didn't she say it? An explanation is given: she didn't care anymore. She was so devastated that she did not want to justify or explain her acts before a court of law.
Fair enough.
But what about her family? And even more to the point: did no one actually worked on the case? A kid who has been under intensive care for a rare and terrible disease is not something that goes unnoticed. Did it ever occurred to anyone to connect the dots? Through out the entire film, either people look at her with disgust or people from her past -such as her ex-husband- are mentioned to have turned their back in horror. While I'm willing to understand that people may strongly and even violently react to euthanasia, there is nonetheless a difference in between a psycho mother who killed her son and a medical doctor, with extensive knowledge of all the horrible phases her son has gone and will go through before a certain death, and who gives him some peace with euthanasia. To conclude, I would say the film is completely dishonest, because it makes characters act in the most implausible ways, solely to obfuscate the truth and thus protect the final twist: the kid was sick and the mother isn't a monster, just a loving mom who did what she thought was best for her son.
The characters don't make any sense. Scott Thomas and Zylberstein do a good job considering all of the above, but they are two only to be saved, as the rest of the cast is ranging from average to bad.
Technically the movie is good. Nice camera work and lighting, fine editing and the music choice was interesting.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
All this user's reviews
9
AliBenzekriJun 20, 2013
HeartBreaking Kristen Scott Thomas was great and gave the greatest performance by an actress in 2008
Elsa Zylberstein was a very good supporting player what a joy to watch them both interact on screen
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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