The Double Life of Véronique
The Double Life of Véronique
R | 22 November 1991 (USA)
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Véronique is a beautiful young French woman who aspires to be a renowned singer; Weronika lives in Poland, has a similar career goal and looks identical to Véronique, though the two are not related. The film follows both women as they contend with the ups and downs of their individual lives, with Véronique embarking on an unusual romance with Alexandre Fabbri, a puppeteer who may be able to help her with her existential issues.

Reviews
SpuffyWeb

Sadly Over-hyped

Mjeteconer

Just perfect...

LouHomey

From my favorite movies..

Teringer

An Exercise In Nonsense

dromasca

Seeing the films of Krzysztof Kieslowski is a special experience, now, more than two decades since he stopped making films, and died soon after. The Polish director's relative short life (he died at the age of 54) and career (less than two decades) is now turning into legend. Each of his films shows the quality and the emotion of a true master of the cinema. "The Double Life of Veronique" (or "La double vie de Véronique" in French) is one of his best known movies, made at the peak of his cinema career, between the Decalogue and the Three Colors trilogy. Somehow I missed it at release. Now, in the perspective of the life and death of the director, not only that it stays as a remarkable piece of cinema but it is enriched with new significance.Fate and identity are the two big topics of this film. Have you ever had the feeling that you are not alone or even unique in the Universe, that somewhere or maybe in some other time, a parallel destiny is shared with yours? Did you ever feel like your life is not the result of your own decisions, that higher forces manipulate you life, same as a puppeteer controls his marionettes? If you ever felt something like this or if you can understand or imagine such feelings, this story of two young women, living in two different parts of Europe, sharing talents, feelings and fate without their lives ever intersecting for more than a few seconds, this story should not seem strange at all.Beautiful films (and books, and paintings, and musical works) have complex layers of meanings and a multitude of details that are revealed to the viewer, reader, listener. This is exactly the case with "La double vie de Véronique". One can use multiple keys to read the story. There is a political reading about the parallel destinies of the two women who are born and live on the two sides of the curtain that divided Europe and was just falling down by the time the film was made. There is a philosophical reading about destiny and about the controllers of the destiny (the puppeteer, the writer who creates characters and write about their destinies). There is a religious reading with multiple symbols that ask to be examined from the name of the main character to the music that is sung and played during the film.Each of the scenes includes details that support the multiple stories and have their place in it, in some cases relating to other scenes in the peer story. The only exception was the secondary thread about presumptive perjury by the French Veronique whose sense I could not decipher. Music plays an important role, as the two women are musicians, they sing and teach music that reflects their relation with fate and God. So does light, which is in some cases maneuvered by the characters. The mirrors also show up in many scenes, sometimes as a reflection of the self, in other cases as a gate to the other side, as in Lewis Carroll's stories. Shades and mysteries follow the characters and the viewers at any corner and in any moment.Kieslowski's mastering of the art of cinema is matched by the superb acting of Irène Jacob. She is strange and beautiful, sensitive and expressive. I can also wonder why her star paled after Kieslowski stopped making films, and why other film directors could not make better use of her beauty and talent. She is part of the same generation of French and French-speaking actresses as Juliette Binoche for example, but their post 1995 careers were so different. What a pity.I am happy to have discovered "La double vie de Véronique", even if so late. It's a film to see and see again.

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inioi

Music, image and script combines to offer a very personal work. The film transcends the usual conventions. Do not waste time with unnecessary dramas or unrealistic love stories, and shows us something very unusual: the feminine inner world, subtle perceptions, intuition, omens, strange coincidences...The unspoken moments in the film reveals an intimate atmosphere along the dreamlike and sensual photography. Irene Jacob does an amazing job so natural that it is. Also highlight the music, as in the trilogy BLUE, RED AND WHITEIt is a movie to let go,see it without preconceived ideas.10/10

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parth-nagori

The Double Life of Véronique, a poetic masterpiece. This is a film which compels you to read about it more than the time you have watched it for. Krzysztof Kieślowski has made love to the silver screen. The magical use of Red, Green & Golden has taken cinematography to an altogether new level. The awe inspiring music by Zbigniew Preisner, that surely lifts the mood. And finally the most beautiful thing to ever happen to cinema, Irène Jacob. Though the film doesn't have a story that can be put on paper yet it has a hypnotic effect. Can't believe it was made 22 years ago. Those who love real cinema & want to celebrate emotions are in for a treat.

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Alex Harsanyi

This film just inspired me to watch more older films. In the summer i was in a Christian camp where they showed the main scene (for me it is) when Alexandre Fabbri is playing with the marionette ballerina. When I arrived home I immediately started searching for this film and finally i found it! It took me 3 days to watch it. This became my favorite film of all my life. There are scenes and quotes that mean so much to me. I feel I am not the only one with this feeling because as I can see, there are events that are alternative, and has effects that are different for you and your friends either.What is the most interesting thing what i've ever seen/heard? There is only one music in the film and makes you happy or sad depending on the scene. The cameraman's work is excellent too! :) I absolutely would nominate this for Golden Globe of all times.

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