Perhaps the best part about French-language film Deux (Two Of Us) is it avoids the tropes of making a same-sex love film so wholeheartedly.

Shot like a mystery, complete with keyhole scenes and ominous music, it’s a film about losing someone you love, and being ready to take on the world to get them back.

It’s not dreary or melodramatic, but the story of elderly lovers Nina and Madeleine, ready to head off and live a free life together, is abruptly halted when one of them suffers an ailment.

No one knows the secret between them, and with family and nursing staff intervening to do what they think is right, the scorner lover is left out in the cold, unknown and unacknowledged.

The performances from Barbara Sukowa and Martine Chevallier are stunning. The two of them make the film, and often convey emotion and passion without any words at all.

Director Filippo Meneghetti, in making a film original and intriguing in the well-worn lesbian lovers sub-genre, has created an expertly crafted, intense piece of art that’s well worth remembering.

4/5 Stars