Bastards

French filmmaker Claire Denis has directed some tough dramas about broken families and cruel relationships in the past (including Beau Travail and The Intruder), but Bastards may be her bleakest portrait yet. Vincent Lindon stars as cargo ship captain Marco, who returns home after decades to see his estranged family for reasons that do not become clear until much later. His sister is a mess and her daughter is in the hospital, the victim of terrible sexual abuse. Marco moves into a building above the apartment of a divorced mother (Chiara Mastroianni) who has a young son; her ex is a powerful businessman with some shady business dealings. The fractured flashback structure makes it hard to piece together how everyone is connected, especially since the story unfolds slowly. But what eventually becomes clear is the rot in Marco's family line and the reason he left it all behind. In some ways, Bastards plays like a warped version of Chinatown, only with an even more black-hearted backstory and an insidious ending. This is a challenging film revolving around a mystery that involves a conspiracy related to sexual abuse and pornography, told in a narrative style that forces the viewer to work. Although a tough film to watch, this may still appeal to fans of dark stories and challenging material. A strong optional purchase. (S. Axmaker)