Juliette Binoche on Godard, Godzilla, and finding a "soul-to-soul connection" with her co-stars
The legendary French actress and Queen At Sea star Juliette Binoche tells us what it's like moving from the arthouse to green screens.
Juliette Binoche, the acclaimed French actress known for her captivating performances, discusses her career highlights and her latest role in Queen At Sea. Born into a family of actors, Binoche embarked on her acting journey at a young age, making her film debut in Liberty Belle (1983). However, it wasn't until her role in the 1988 adaptation of Milan Kundera's novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being that she gained international recognition.
Throughout the 1990s, Binoche continued to impress audiences with her performances in Louis Malle's Damage, Krzysztof Kieślowski's Three Colors trilogy, and Anthony Minghella's The English Patient, for which she received an Oscar.
In recent years, Binoche has ventured into big-budget blockbusters like Godzilla and Ghost in the Shell, as well as more comedic roles such as Dan in Real Life and Slack Bay. Currently, she is starring in the harrowing film Queen At Sea, where she portrays a woman navigating the complexities of raising a teenage daughter while dealing with her mother's Alzheimer's disease and her stepfather's struggle to maintain his love for his wife amidst the circumstances.
Binoche's portrayal in Queen At Sea resonates deeply with her personal experiences, as she has gone through similar stages of life—transitioning from childhood to adulthood and facing the challenges of love, loss, and aging. The film delves into thought-provoking themes such as consent, consciousness, and the moral dilemmas posed by Alzheimer's disease. Binoche finds the film's exploration of these questions to be essential, as cinema serves as a means to prepare individuals for the realities of life.
When reflecting on her performance, Binoche admits that watching the film once was overwhelming, leaving her questioning the resolution and pondering the fairness of the situation. The film's complex narrative, combining elements of thriller and drama, challenges viewers to confront their own beliefs and values while offering a cathartic experience. Binoche believes that films, like tragedies in ancient Greek theater, have the power to provoke introspection and help individuals grow emotionally.
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