Her life is deeply affected by her relationship with Emma (played by Léa Seydoux), a blue-haired, self-assured artist. Close-up shots of the protagonist’s face—while she eats spaghetti or sleeps, when she first kisses her lover in a sun splattered park, as she sucks Emma’s fingers in a restaurant - establish a tenderness between the viewer and Adele. In contrast, the wide angle used primarily for scenes in the bedroom - or, contrastingly, in the classroom—put the audience back in our place. We are the voyeurs. We are only watching Adele as she lives her life. And what a messy, beautiful life it is!

Throughout the film Adele develops from a school girl - self-consciously adjusting her jeans, losing her virginity, meeting with friends - to a damaged but resilient woman, who dances joyfully, teaches children to read, washes dishes, weeps. Despite criticism of the director’s treatment of the lead actresses, Kechiche’s film is as emotionally affecting as it is difficult to label. Adele: Chapters 1 & 2 is not exactly a “lesbian” film, though it traces a romantic relationship between two women, nor is it simply a French film.

Sure, the film is set in France, and there is plenty of conspicuous French culture. The characters kiss cheeks, Adele’s parents drink wine with every meal, the lovers view art and march together in demonstrations, Emma even teaches Adele to eat raw oysters - typical of both French cuisine as well as an overstated nod to other acts performed with the mouth.

By failing to fit neatly into one category, Adele: Chapters 1 & 2 opens itself to a more universal theme: the paradoxically devastating and reaffirming nature of human connection. In one of the film’s final shots the audience sees Adele leaving the opening of Emma’s successful art exhibition. Adele - beautifully dressed, unstable, smoking a cigarette, back to the camera - exudes fragility. This closing shot is resonant because it mirrors the fragility in each of our hearts, regardless of our sexual orientation or nationality. The film closes not with a bang, but with a whimper: the end promises only more life.

As you settle into your art cinema seat to view Adele: Chapters 1 & 2, be prepared to squirm, not because of the sexual nature of the film, but rather because of the emotional weight portrayed by the young actresses in Kechiche’s film. If the purpose of art is to make people feel, Adele: Chapters 1 & 2 certainly fits the bill. Staggering and beautiful, Adele: Chapters 1 & 2 is a tour de force. Best to be taken in one sitting, only for the strong of heart.

By Zoë Clements for XpatLoop.com

Shown in Budapest in Művész art cinema with Hungarian subtitles