Tackling a subject close to home for writer-director Marie Kreutzer, Gentle Monster examines the fallout when Philip Weiss (Laurence Rupp) — a middle-class Austrian documentary maker, father and beloved husband — is accused of watching, distributing and maybe even making child pornography.
Kreutzer’s colleague, the actor Florian Teichtmeister who appeared in her acclaimed feature Corsage, was caught up in a similar case, resulting in his being sentenced to two years in prison. But instead of examining the psychology of accused men, Kreutzer smartly elects to tell the story largely through the eyes of his bewildered French wife Lucy, played by Léa Seydoux in a performance that’s all raw nerves — steely, vulnerable, angry and broken at once.
Gentle Monster
The Bottom Line
A tricky topic handled gracefully.
