Di­rect­ed by Tom Tyk­w­er

The blind stu­dent is played by Mel­chior Beslon, who was so ar­rest­ing as Ot­to in The Princess and the War­rior. Al­though it strikes us as un­like­ly that some­one so hand­i­capped could dash so fast through the streets of Paris, Beslon is gen­uine­ly blind in re­al life. His ges­tures and voice are com­pelling, and have a sen­si­tiv­i­ty that helps us em­pathize with his con­di­tion. Na­tal­ie Port­man, serves as a per­fect foil for Beslon. Like Run Lo­la Run, the film is a ki­net­ic riff on the theme of des­tiny, and mis­un­der­stand­ings in love. The best part is a glo­ri­ous ca­den­za of ac­cel­er­at­ed im­ages, as the stu­dent re­calls the re­la­tion­ship he has had with his girl friend. In less than three min­utes of screen time, nov­el­ty be­comes rou­tine, ec­sta­sy be­comes bore­dom, rifts and soli­tude ap­pear in­evitable – un­til the fi­nal twist, which turns the joke on the au­di­ence. Once again – and with ob­vi­ous plea­sure – Tyk­w­er has cre­at­ed a cou­ple who race in tune with life, chal­leng­ing their kar­ma at ev­ery turn.