The Truth

The Truth (La Vérité) centres on Fabienne Dangeville, a celebrated figure of French cinema who publishes her memoirs. Her daughter Lumir, a screenwriter living in New York, returns to Paris with her husband and young daughter for the occasion, and the reunion soon becomes a reckoning. Lumir finds little in the book that matches her own memory of her mother, and old grievances, affections and resentments surface. Meanwhile Fabienne is preparing a new role, in a science-fiction film, that echoes her own family situation.

The film was directed and written by Hirokazu Kore-eda, his eleventh feature in chronological order, following Shoplifters and preceding Broker, and his first made outside Japan. Catherine Deneuve plays Fabienne and Juliette Binoche plays Lumir, with Ethan Hawke as Hank, Clémentine Grenier as Charlotte, Manon Clavel as Manon and Alain Libolt as Luc, among a credited cast of 29. It is a French, Swiss and Japanese co-production.

Released in October 2019, the drama runs 106 minutes and took about 5 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb-style audience polling it holds 6 out of 10 from 273 votes on TMDB, while the critics' rating stands at 7.2 out of 10 from 168 reviews, so reviewers responded more warmly than the general audience.