La Syndicaliste review: Playing the union blues

Assuming that the horrific assault is a warning, Maureen and her husband Gilles spend the ensuing months under police protection.

But when the crime is under investigation, doubt starts to creep into the minds of the investigators — to such an extent that Maureen is eventually accused of having staged her own assault.

And so viewers are faced with an ethical dilemma: is she a victim or a perpetrator?
Confession: I was initially sceptical at casting Huppert as the Irish-born Kearney. Although fluent in French, the real Maureen has a noticeable accent when she speaks the language,

But although Huppert plays her with a Parisian French accent, the casting works superbly.
The actor’s performance recalls her role in Paul Verhoeven’s Elle in which she also played a rape victim accused of making up her assault.

Israeli-born French actor Yvan Attal also gives a measured performance as the former chairman of nuclear company Aveva Luc Oursel who finds himself at war with Maureen over his alleged nefarious dealings with China.

This is a truly shocking story that is told with precision and sensitivity. I knew very little about the political scandal before watching the film, and I was was gripped from the get-go.