Pacifiction (2023)

Albert Serra's latest film was nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes last year, and we've had to wait almost a year to get its unsurprisingly small release here in the UK.

Pacifiction has been loosely described as a political thriller, an explanation that barely touches the sides of its two hour forty-five-minute run time. Benoît Magimel stars as High Commissioner De Roller on the French Polynesian Island of Tahiti, a man who during the course of the film must investigate rumours of submarine sightings off the island, and a growing unease about the potential return of nuclear testing nearby.

From the beginning the spectre of Armageddon looms large without anyone wanting to consider the potentially very real possibility of its arrival. Pacifiction is packed with lengthy conversations that are tension filled and incredibly engaging; Serra poises the film with the audience always half a step behind, but it's so engrossing you're desperate to keep up, clawing at all the offered half meanings and reasons behind what may or may not be going on. The film's final quarter throws everything up in the air for the audiences' interpretation as it becomes Gaspar Noe meets David Lynch.

Benoît Magimel is exceptional in the main role, and is ably supported by a superb performance by Pahoa Mahagafana as Shannah, a dance choreographer who slowly becomes more and more entwined in De Roller's world as he may or may not be falling in love with her.

Serra's film ends in a way that again, is open to interpretation but is nonetheless powerful, ending a near three hour run time that absolutely flies by, and cements its place as one of 2023's finest films. 8.4/10