partisan...

Some films are best watched from the comfort of your own home.

Close to cushions to cover your face and with the freedom to get up and pace around the room when things start to get uncomfortable on screen.

I did a lot a standing up during this film. It unnerved me...

At the start of the film, the charismatic Gregori (Vincent Cassel) saunters into a hospital maternity ward and charms new mother Susanna. Eleven years later, she and her son Alexander live in Gregori’s closed community, sheltering vulnerable women and their brood in a haven isolated from the outside world...

Alexander is Gregori’s prize pupil, eldest son, and star employee in the cottage industry—in which the kids are trained to run dangerous errands to provide for the group—but Gregori feels threatened by the boy’s inquisitive nature, struck by the fear that his child might not love him anymore. Meanwhile, Alexander begins to think for himself. ( I defy anyone to watch Vincent Cassels and not always be on the edge of thier seat, waiting for him to kick off)

The young actor Jeremy Chabriel is mesmerising in this. He doesn't say much, he doesn't need to. Everything you need to see and feel is right there in his blue unblinking gaze

In this his feature debut,  director Ariel Kleiman shows us a hidden world, then casts innocuous moments, such as a karaoke party or a child playing with a paintball gun, in an increasingly sinister light.

The music plays an integral part in this, adding hugely to the feeling of unease and disconnection. The stunning soundtrack is by Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never ( I have no idea how to pronounce that). It's so good I'm seriously thinking about buying

The outdoor scenes were shot in Georgia and are the perfect bleak, slightly other worldly landscape.

Do yourself a favour and catch this one.

Queen Marie