Time Out

This haunting French drama brings to mind the Seinfeld episode in which George goes to increasingly elaborate lengths to maintain his unemployment benefits. As Jerry observes, it would probably be less effort to actually find work. But director (and co-writer) Laurent Cantet's leisurely-paced Time Out is no laughing matter, unnervingly capturing the psyche-scarring toll on Vincent (Aurélien Recoing), a middle-aged man who loses his job, and then concocts an increasingly convoluted deception to convince his wife and family that he has an important new job with the United Nations in Switzerland. In order to finance his subterfuge, Vincent solicits his parents and friends in an investment scam. Further complicating matters is Jean-Michel (Serge Livrozet), who is on to Vincent and offers him a job with his company, which imports brand-name knockoffs. Critics have compared Time Out to One Hour Photo, but Vincent is no psycho creep: he's an ordinary man desperately trying to cling to his sense of self-worth. In this era of downsizing, his plight touches a universal chord. Recommended. (K. Lee Benson)