It's difficult to think of a director so skilled at combining political drama with a warmly humanist message, finessing the plot to the point where you really do find yourself asking what you would have done under the circumstances.
And the circumstances here, like the characters, are fascinatingly complex. It's a trick French director Robert Guédiguian has pulled off many times before.
Don't be confused by the title: The Snows of Kilimanjaro is set in Guédiguian's beloved Marseille, whose working-class district of L'Estaque is reminiscent of the Liverpool of Ken Loach's Raining Stones: a place where socialism, community ties and the harsh realities of modern life build into an explosive mixture.
There's more than a hint of Ricky Tomlinson in Jean-Pierre Darroussin's union rep, Michel, who accepts redundancy along with younger colleagues when he could easily have used his position to protect his job. But that's only the start of a morally complex and moving tale about the pressures placed on Michel's marriage (to Marie-Caire, played by Guédiguian's real-life wife and muse, Ariane Ascaride) by a traumatic event that occurs during a quite evening in with friends.
The result is a film which celebrates life at the same time as it questions the values of a society focused on money - a great way to start the week.
The Snows of Kilimanjaro shows tonight (October 24) at 6pm, Vue 7 and tomorrow (October 25) at 3pm, Vue 7
The 55th BFI London Film Festival, in partnership with American Express, runs until October 27. All venues, screening dates and times at www.bfi.org.uk, where booking is now open; also by telephone, 020 7928 3232 (9.30am-8.30pm daily), or in person at the box office of BFI Southbank, SE1 (11am-8.30pm daily). Stand-by tickets may be available 30 minutes before screening at the venue.
