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High Life
The messiness of sex, the mysteries of birth and the moving spectacle of devoted parenting in the face of impending oblivion create a potent atmosphere in Claire Denis’ English-language debut.
Director: Claire Denis
Overview
A man (a career-best Pattinson) and a charming baby are the last two survivors on a once-chaotic spaceship full of convicts. Their government-issued mission – to harvest energy from black holes, overseen by the foxy Dr Dibs (Binoche) – is overwhelmed by feral dynamics that shift between violent and erotic. Juliette Binoche channels unabashed sensuality in one unforgettable sequence. Featuring an eerie score by Denis’ long-term musician collaborator, Stuart Staples, this is poetic, image-driven cinema that defies convention to embrace something wilder.
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