Festivals - Cannes 2025 : Rebecca Zlotowski’s “A Private Life” Mesmerizes with Jodie Foster’s Bilingual Brilliance and a Standing Ovation

By Mulder, Cannes, Palais des Festivals et des Congrès de Cannes, 20 may 2025

On May 20, 2025, the Palais des Festivals witnessed a moment of rare cinematic magic as Rebecca Zlotowski’s latest film A Private Life (Vie privée) lit up the screen in the Out of Competition section of the Cannes Film Festival. From the first haunting note of Robin Rob Coudert’s score to the last chilling frame of Lilian Steiner’s unraveling psyche, the film cast a spell on the Grand Théâtre Lumière. As the credits rolled, a ten-minute standing ovation erupted—no small feat in a festival renowned for its discerning audience. What makes this film stand apart isn’t just its mystery-laced narrative or its star-studded cast; it’s the multilayered elegance with which it weaves emotional trauma, psychological inquiry, and a deep sense of European identity into a hauntingly intimate thriller. For Jodie Foster, who marks her third performance in French, it’s a triumphant return not just to Cannes but to a language and culture she holds close to her heart.

Jodie Foster portrays Lilian Steiner, a celebrated psychiatrist who is shaken to her core upon learning of the suspicious death of a former patient. What follows is not merely an investigation, but a descent into doubt, obsession, and ultimately revelation. Jodie Foster inhabits Steiner with such precise emotional control that one almost forgets she’s acting in a language not her own. Her delivery—subtle, unforced, and full of nuance—has been rightfully singled out by critics and audiences alike. Her command of French is not only linguistically accurate but emotionally fluent, giving Lilian an authenticity that anchors the film’s more stylized flourishes. Jodie Foster’s immersion in French cinema has deepened over the years, but here she goes beyond performance to become, in effect, a vessel of Franco-American cinematic fusion. One could feel, in the minutes of applause that followed the premiere, that the audience wasn’t merely reacting to a great film—they were acknowledging a living legend, transcending borders yet rooted deeply in the soil of European auteur cinema.

Rebecca Zlotowski, best known for An Easy Girl and Other People’s Children, continues to prove she’s one of France’s most compelling narrative architects. Here, working alongside co-writers Anne Berest and Gaëlle Macé, she builds a puzzle-like narrative that smartly avoids over-explaining. The screenplay dances between past trauma and present investigation, constantly placing the viewer in the same position as its protagonist—doubting, reassessing, questioning motives and memory. Filmed in Paris and the foggy coastal stretches of Normandy between September and November 2024, the film evokes a sense of temporal stillness, as if its world were trapped between tides. George Lechaptois’ cinematography is richly textured—rain-soaked Parisian boulevards and dimly-lit consultation rooms mirror the film’s internal turmoil. Editor Géraldine Mangenot smartly keeps the pacing tight at 105 minutes, letting the tension build without veering into melodrama. It’s a masterclass in mood, aided immeasurably by Coudert’s atmospheric score, which blends sparse piano lines with more experimental sonic textures.

The ensemble surrounding Jodie Foster is no less dazzling. Daniel Auteuil brings a weary gravitas to the role of an embattled police investigator entangled in Lilian’s search for the truth, while Virginie Efira, often known for lighter or romantic roles, leans into a colder, more cryptic character who may or may not be holding back crucial information. Mathieu Amalric appears in a smaller but pivotal role, while Vincent Lacoste and Luana Bajrami flesh out the narrative’s younger, more volatile edges. What’s notable is how Zlotowski uses these big names not as decorative ornaments, but as extensions of the script’s core themes—each character representing a different angle on trust, grief, and professional boundaries.

The film’s reception was electric. Beyond the ovation, early reviews from international outlets have been enthusiastic. Variety praised the “polished menace” of Zlotowski’s direction and the “linguistic elegance” of Jodie Foster’s performance. Le Monde called it “une plongée vertigineuse dans les zones grises de l’âme humaine.” Sony Pictures Classics clearly saw the global potential in A Private Life, securing distribution rights for North and Latin America back in February 2025. Its French theatrical release is already scheduled for November 26, 2025, promising to capitalize on the post-Cannes momentum and likely setting it up as a major awards-season player, especially in acting and screenplay categories.

What’s fascinating is how A Private Life manages to operate on several registers at once. It’s a murder mystery, yes, but also a psychological portrait, a reflection on the limits of professional ethics, and—perhaps most poignantly—a meditation on solitude. Lilian Steiner is a woman defined by discretion, emotional armor, and intellectual rigor, and yet she is ultimately undone not by others but by her own insistence on knowing the unknowable. This layered exploration of human vulnerability is classic Zlotowski, who once said in an interview, “Je crois que le mystère est plus cinématographique que la vérité.” (I believe mystery is more cinematic than truth.)

There’s a uniquely European quality to A Private Life—a refusal to simplify, a celebration of ambiguity—that might pose challenges in more commercial markets, but its critical success is already cemented. The choice to present the film out of competition was strategic, allowing it to shine without the weight of jury expectations, and Cannes proved once again why it remains the gold standard of film curation. For cinephiles present on that fateful night at the Palais, the applause was not just for a film—it was for a filmmaker who continues to evolve, a star who transcends language, and a story that refuses to be pinned down.

Photos from the red carpet and behind-the-scenes moments are available on Mulderville’s Flickr gallery, capturing the vibrancy and glamour of an evening destined to be remembered. And for those wanting a taste of the film’s moody atmosphere, the official teaser offers a tantalizing glimpse into this elegantly constructed labyrinth of grief, guilt, and perception. A Private Life may not have been in competition, but in the minds of many who attended, it was the night’s real winner.

You can discover our photos in our Flickr page

Synopsis : 
Lilian Steiner is a renowned psychiatrist. When she learns of the death of one of her patients, she becomes convinced that it was murder. Disturbed, she decides to investigate.

A Private Life (Vie privée)
Directed by Rebecca Zlotowski
Written by Rebecca Zlotowski, Anne Berest, Gaëlle Macé
Produced by Frederic Jouve
Starring  Jodie Foster, Daniel Auteuil, Virginie Efira
Cinematography : George Lechaptois
Edited by Géraldine Mangenot
Music by Robin Rob Coudert
Production companies : Les Films Velvet, France 3 Cinéma
Distributed by Ad Vitam (France)
Release date : 20 May 2025 (Cannes), November 26, 2025 (France)
Running time : 105 minutes

Photos : @fannyrlphotography