Sarah’s Key

I found this tedious and maudlin until the final act got going. It got better from there, but not enough to save the movie overall. I can see how many people would get hit by it emotionally, but I just didn’t feel it, finding the character work too thin, the structure undermining to the overall effect, and the result more predictable than the movie seems to think it was. It’s handsome and well-acted, for sure, but I can’t help but see the manipulative gears of the film in full view.

It’s a dual...