Paris, 13th District (Les Olympiades)

In a high-rise apartment building in Paris’s 13th arondissement, Émelie (Lucie Zhang) is a telemarketing representative trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life. She meets Camille (Makita Samba), a part-time teacher working on his dissertation, when he responds to an ad she’s posted in search of a new roommate. The two immediately hit it off, intellectually and physically, and all seems fun and exciting until Camille starts seeing Nora (Noémie Merlant), a former law school student who was compelled to drop out after battling a case of mistaken identity due to a racy viral video.

As the characters’ stories intertwine, their messiness and uncertainty lend the whole a refreshing authenticity devoid of contrivance or manipulation. Co-written by Céline Sciamma (Portrait of Lady on Fire, Petite Maman), Paris, 13th District is “a silky, soulful black-and-white tapestry of single millennials seeking connection” (Variety), and a stellar example of some of the visionary filmmaking coming out of France’s capital city at the moment.

(France / 2021 / Directed by Jacques Audiard)
R / 1 hr 45 mins
In English, French, & Mandarin with subtitles