AN OFFICER AND A SPY (J’ACCUSE)

France, Italy | 2019 | DCP | 111 min. | French with English subtitles
Director: Roman Polanski
Cast: Jean Dujardin, Louis Garrel, Mathieu Amalric
Adapted from Robert Harris’ book, Polanski’s critically acclaimed and award-winning movie takes a compelling look at the Dreyfus Affair, a landmark case of institutional corruption, antisemitism, and resistance to both. In the late 19th Century, French officer Georges Picquart (Dujardin) initially accepts the conviction and exile of Alfred Dreyfus (Garrel) as justified. After assuming command of a military intelligence unit, Picquart discovers evidence that Dreyfus was deliberately framed to conceal another officer’s treason, forcing him to confront the corruption and bigotry at the heart of the army he serves. Brilliantly edited and impeccably photographed, An Officer and a Spy is “effortlessly absorbing procedural cinema” (Justin Chang, The Los Angeles Times) that “has something very real and urgent to say about the world we live in today” (Glenn Kenny, Rogerebert.com).