Film Review: The Double Life Of Veronique / La Double Vie De Veronique [dir. Krzysztof Kieslowski; 1991]

It’s difficult to be concise about a film I know better than almost any other, but I must adhere to my self-imposed one-paragraph rule and resist the temptation to produce a dissertation. (Speaking of which, would anyone like to read my thesis on the Three Colours? What’s that? I’ve made you all read it already? Oh, right.) In short, then, this is one of the most beguiling movies I’ve ever had the pleasure to watch. An inexplicable, mystical tale of a young French woman whose life seems to have been foreshadowed (perhaps even controlled) by an identical woman living in Poland, La Double Vie uses recurring images of lenses, light and duality – as well as Irene Jacob’s naturalistic, award-winning performance and Zbigniew Preisner’s unparalleled musical score – to present a unique meditation on Love, Life And Everything Else. It’s as perplexing as it is moving, but that’s what makes it unmissable.