Watch Two Days, One Night For Free

This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I mainly found out about this Belgian-French-Italian film because of the leading actress being nominated during awards season, I had no idea what it was about, I was just hoping for something worthwhile, directed by brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne (Rosetta, The Kid with a Bike). Basically in the industrial town of Seraing, near Liège, Belgium, Sandra Bya (Oscar nominated Marion Cotillard) is a young wife and mother to two children, she works for Solwal, a small solar- panel factory. After suffering a nervous breakdown, Sandra has been forced to take time off from her job, on medical leave for depression. During Sandra's absence, shop foreman and her immediate supervisor Jean- Marc (Olivier Gourmet) suggests to the boss, M. Dumont (Batiste Sornin), that her section of the company can function with sixteen people working full time with a bit of overtime. The management proposes a €1,000 bonus to all staff if they agree to make Sandra redundant, near the end of her medical leave she returns to work and discovers that her fate rests in the hands of her sixteen co-workers. Sandra's friend and co-worker Juliette (Catherine Salée) learns a "show of hands" vote was held, the result a 13-3 decision for the bonuses over Sandra's job, Juliette knows Jean-Marc is determined to get rid of Sandra. The vote was influenced by scare mongering through misinformation, but Juliette and Sandra at the end of the Friday working day are to convince Dumont to hold another secret ballot on Monday morning. Sandra needs a majority to keep her job, meaning nine votes, by Saturday morning, Sandra's supportive husband Manu (Fabrizio Rongione) convinces her that over the weekend she should speak to all thirteen of her colleagues who voted for the bonuses to get them to change their minds. They not only need the income from Sandra's job, but Manu believes the job is a symbol for Sandra, to prove her own self worth and for her mental state. Sandra reluctantly goes about this task, visiting and finding her colleagues one by one, most of the co-workers however need the proposed bonus for their own families. Finally it comes to Monday morning, the factory workers have a second ballot, but the vote is tied, with eight votes to keep the bonus and eight for Sandra to leave, as a result, Sandra will lose her position. However, the factory manager calls Sandra into his office, he agrees to give her a job, but in the end, she decides to turn it down, Sandra has found the emotional strength to deal with the situation and the confidence to start anew, to pursue a new life for herself. Also starring Pili Groyne as Estelle, Simon Caudry as Maxime, Alain Eloy as Willy, Myriem Akheddiou as Mireille, Fabienne Sciascia as Nadine and Timur Magomedgadzhiev as Timur. I can see why Cotillard was nominated the Oscar, she gives it her all as the ordinary working-class woman coming out of depression now on the edge trying to keep her job, it is a fairly simple humanistic story, the majority of which is just the leading character knocking on doors and talking to her co-workers about whether they will change their mind or not, but it is interesting enough to keep you hooked until the end, a worthwhile drama. It was nominated the BAFTA for Best Film Not in the English Language. Very good!

Marion Cotillard is one of the best french Actress and this movie purely reflect the reason why .Whenever Marion is doing a French Film she is something else , i totally adore her acting Skills Two Days, One Night is a very simple themed drama movie , but it's the masterful work of Marion , Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne , and everyone else related to this project that make this simple themed indie movie a Cinematic Art .I absolutely love the simplicity of this movie .A must watch for all Drama Lover .

In Belgium, Sandra Bya (Marion Cotillard) is married with two children. She's been on sick leave for depression. Her co-workers vote to get her fired rather than not collect their bonuses. Her friend convinces their boss Dumont to make another vote, this time a secret vote. They're convinces that their supervisor Jean-Marc is pressuring them to vote her out. She is reluctant to beg for her job. She has two days and one night to meet her co-workers one on one, and convince them to help.Marion Cotillard is brilliant and the concept is so simple. It's fascinating to see the spectrum of reactions to her pleas. The wide array of personalities is intriguingly human. Cotillard plays down her depressed character and shows some real depths. This is a small simple story that is done brilliantly.

Again this is another working class film situation in Seraing Belgium from the Dardenne brothers. This is emphasised not just in Sandra's situation, but in many of the co workers she visits one by one. It has all the Dardenne hallmarks; the tension and nervousness of the entire confrontation that Sandra has to go through with each person is magnified tenfold with the long takes that seem to take an eternity to reach the face to face, and an eternity for that answer we have heard before. They too need the bonus, they too are under financial strain. This is not quite Italian neo-realism, but we are well aware of the stress of the economic situation nevertheless. Where another film might cut into the door opening and the conversation starts immediately, here we must follow Sandra logically through tracking down her coworkers. Each inquiry is greeted by different reactions, but Cotillard remains the same. We all know this feeling, the pit in the stomach as you grow nearer to a dreaded conversation, wishing to not have to go through this.It is a wonderfully nuanced performance from Marion Cotillard. Even as the biggest actress the Dardennes have worked with yet, she becomes quite plain, quite troubled and vulnerable on the screen. She trembles with dreaded anticipation of yet another rejection, of another apology of needing the bonus, and we sympathise deeply. We see how she is wracked with guilt at having to force these decisions, how she knows how little they think of her, and how even littler she sees herself. There are hints of her competence and her kindness. There is a perfect moment in the car where her face creases up in a weary smile as her eyes well up with tears, and she grasps the hand of her husband. But there is little of these moments; the camera is unsentimental, offering no closeup reaction shots. Cotillard almost singlehandedly carries this emotion roller-coaster, where hope and despair see-saw wildly with each vote. There is clearly a financial incentive in keeping her position, but as we progress, we understand that for the depressed Sandra, it is more than just that. There is dignity at stake.Sandra does not want an abundance of pity or comfort. Opposite is her husband Manu (Fabrizio Rongione), who plays a useful (not entirely in the eyes of Sandra) role. While some might be able to empathise with Sandra's depression, others still will see themselves in the carer/significant other in Manu. It is a very familiar feeling, to have caring emotions turning into unwanted pity, to have words of encouragement ignored. Anyone who has occupied this character knows this. He is vital. As the film began to reach that vote count I thought there was little that could satisfy me in terms of a conclusion. Accept her back in and maybe a little predictable, a little sentimental. Cast her out into the waters and the whole crusade is rendered useless, a depressing and futile series of events. But the Dardennes pull it off; we learn so much of Sandra's character not just because she almost cannot bear to put such a burden of a decision on her coworkers (even the ones who dislike her), but because she is able to put herself in their shoes at the end. She is faced with the same dilemma and she reacts the only way that the Sandra we have seen would: with empathy. It receives added meaning and significance due to the last meeting in the laundromat, where we are introduced to a humble and gentle character in Alphonse , who like many of those before him is just looking out for his family. He does the right thing (in his, God's and the audience's eyes), and the Dardennes reward him and the audience by making Sandra do the right thing.