Written and Directed by Xavier Legrand
Starring Léa Drucker, Denis Ménochet, ThomasGioria, Mathilde Auneveux
Running time 1 hour 33 minutes
MPAA rating: not rated
Trigger warning: this film contains scenes of domestic violence, which are discussed in this review.

by Deborah Krieger

The first fifteen minutes or so of Custody (Jusqu’à la garde in French, directed by Xavier Legrand) are a bit of a red herring in terms of what kind of film we’re going to get. In an ordinary meeting room, Miriam (Léa Drucker, Le Bureau des Légendes) and Antoine (Denis Ménochet, Inglourious Basterds), along with their respective black-gowned attorneys, present their cases before a slightly-exhausted looking judge and her assistant. They’re waiting for the judge to weigh their statements and make a decision, but they’re also making their cases to us, the audience, who are meeting them for the first time, and are, like the judge, hoping to glean as many truthful details as possible.