49 days in a row at the cinema, and after 263 films so far in 2017, M affected more than almost any other.

M is the most poignant film I've seen this year. The lead characters--a ghetto gangster and a high school poet--are the exact same and polar opposites at the same time. Their relationship is based on this attraction, like two discarded magnets together in the trash that latch fast because their negatives and positives unite them. Then, to make the film even more powerful, each scene mirrors this immutable frailty. Sara Forestier (who wrote, directed and stars in M) subtly juxtaposes each element (actors, setting, props, dialogue…) to heighten the tension until we are like a stretched rubber band, ready to snap.

M is brutal poetry, delicious agony, an intimate tour-de-force. It wiped me out and soothed me, left me withered and enthused...and moved. Out of a possible 10, I have 9 Fs to give. Thank you, thank you, thank you, merci mille fois Sara Forestier.