The Competition

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The Competition

2016

2h 1m

Documentary

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

87%

Tomatometer

15 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Everyday life at la Fémis, a Parisian cinema school.

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Diego Semerene

Slant Magazine

Claire Simon knows that the best way to capture the anxiousness of a moment is to leave it unembellished.

Rated: 3/4

Feb 21, 2019

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Glenn Kenny

New York Times

I teach film, and this movie gave me some bracing lessons.

Feb 21, 2019

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Ignatiy Vishnevetsky

AV Club

Though The Competition lacks critical distance, what it offers, in spades, is the engrossing experience of watching other people endure pressure and humiliation.

Rated: B-

Feb 20, 2019

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Justine Smith

Vague Visages

What makes someone a great artist before they’ve made any great works of art? That becomes the central question and object of scrutiny at the heart of ‘Le concours,’ making it one of the most compelling examinations of auteur driven cinema.

Jun 5, 2024

Full Review

Sarah Boslaugh

TheArtsStl

...of inherent interest to those who follow global film, because France is a major player in the film world, and la Fémis is a major player in the French film industry.

Rated: 6/10

May 10, 2019

Full Review

Joshua Brunsting

The CriterionCast

...watching titans of the French film upper class dissect young men and women through brief interviews and a series of strange tests is fascinating and incredibly provocative.

Feb 24, 2019

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Audience Member

Why is this movie so long?? If the film was half the length it could have been an insightful and intense examination of the process of admitting students to a prestigious school. As it is it's just exhausting. The only possible justification for that that I can come up with is that the filmmakers wanted to give the audience the same sort of draining experience the people in the film had.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

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Claire Simon

Director

Alain Bergala

Self

Xanaë Bove

Self

Emmanuel Chaumet

Self

Claire Childeric

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Synopsis

Everyday life at la Fémis, a Parisian cinema school.

Director: Claire Simon
Producer: Arnaud Dommerc, Belinda Leduc
Production Co: Andolfi
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 21, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA): $14.3K
Runtime: 2h 1m

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