The Big Picture (l'homme Qui Voulait Vivre Sa Vie) (2010)

82% of critics liked it
(17 reviews)
55% want to see it
(295 ratings)

Paul Exben is a success story -- a great job, a beautiful wife and two wonderful sons. Except that this is not the life he has been dreaming of. A moment of madness is going to change his life, forcing him to assume a new identity that will enable him to live his life fully.

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 54 min.
Directed By: Eric Lartigau
Written By: Eric Lartigau, Laurent de Bartillat
Genres: Art House & International, Drama

Studio: EuropaCorp

Critic Reviews

Jason Best, Movie Talk
Romain Duris's Paul resembles Patricia Highsmith's Mr Ripley, but as he's a man with far more scruples and far less cunning than her amoral anti-hero, it's unclear whether he has the talent to get away with his own spur-of-the-moment scheme.
Graham Young, Birmingham Post
Lacking tension throughout and with some scenes edited far too quickly for the story to make real sense, this is an interesting premise which doesn't quite click.
, Film4
The Big Picture has an inevitable 'je ne sais quoi'; though this never quite smooths over the cracks in its plotting or saggy pacing as an identity thriller.
Philip French, Observer [UK]
This is cleverly developed, if not entirely convincing, and the film has some suggestive twists on the way to its ironic ending.
David Edwards, Daily Mirror [UK]
A Gallic triumph - and one of the edgiest films you'll see all year.
Allan Hunter, Daily Express
Duris brings an edgy vulnerability that makes him a sympathetic figure through a tale that never quite adds up.
Lisa Giles-Keddie, Real.com
This is a fitting second film for Duris that expands his acting arsenal, showing him in a tenser scenario, but still allowing that boisterous nature to shine through
Peter Bradshaw, Guardian [UK]
The direction from Eric Lartigau keeps things moving along fast and furious: preposterous it may be, the movie is carried off with some style.
Sukhdev Sandhu, Daily Telegraph
A vagrant, fitful mixture of domestic drama, existential thriller in the vein of Patricia Highsmith's Ripley series, and evocation of the underbelly of new Europe.
David Aldridge, Radio Times
Eric Lartigau's film is glossily watchable, but it's hampered by a central conceit that never really convinces, and not even a cameo from screen legend Catherine Deneuve lifts proceedings.
Henry Barnes, Little White Lies
Thoughtfully and skilfully done. Duris is superb.
Matthew Turner, ViewLondon
Engaging, unpredictable French thriller that's held together by a riveting central performance from Romain Duris, though it's slightly hampered by a frustrating final act.
David Parkinson, Empire Magazine
A few plot holes hold back what is otherwise a well cast and compelling picture.
Aaron Yap, Flicks.co.nz
Starts out with the makings of a thriller... but eventually settles into redemptive character drama mode with shades of Michelangelo Antonioni's existential classic The Passenger.
Tom Dawson, Total Film
Built around a multilayered performance from Duris, it's a film unafraid to pose more questions than it answers.
Kent Turner, Film-Forward.com
Actor Romain Duris brings a crucial, though often overlooked, ingredient for a man-on-the-run thriller: vulnerability.
Bill Chambers, Film Freak Central
I can't discount the sheer pleasure I got from its constant gear-shifting.

Read all 17 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Daniel P

A difficult to categorise, deeply immersive beautifully shot and acted anti-thriller. Romain Duris puts in a typically impressive performance as a hard-working father who had dreams of being a photographer which he put aside in favour of the security of a well paid job. When he… More
A difficult to categorise, deeply immersive beautifully shot and acted anti-thriller. Romain Duris puts in a typically impressive performance as a hard-working father who had dreams of being a photographer which he put aside in favour of the security of a well paid job. When he discovers his wife is having an affair with a professional photographer (who has yet to get his 'big break'), he confronts the man and in an altercation accidentally kills him. Rather than confessing (he fears he would be forever be labelled a murderer), he covers up the crime and in an elaborate plan, steal the photographer's identity and fakes his own death. Setting off with a camera he pursues the dream career he always wanted, but is now a broken wreck of a man looking to atone... There are at least half a dozen shifts in this wonderfully different film, all of which subtly change the tone of the film without interrupting the flow. Whilst the story occasionally indulges in coincidences for the most part the film feels realistic, and Duris' nuanced study really helps you to believe in him and essentially hope for his 'deliverance'. Stunningly cinematography, almost poetic editing and an open ending combined with spare writing mark <i>The Big Picture</i> out as one of the masterpieces of French cinema. Really worth tracking down.