written by: Rebecca Zlotowski, Anne Berest, and Gaëlle Macé
produced by: Frederic Jouve
directed by: Rebecca Zlotowski
rated: R (for some sexual content, graphic nudity, language and brief violence)
runtime: 103 min.
U.S. release date: December 5, 2025 (limited) and January 23, 2026 (wider)

According to recent interviews, Jodie Foster‘s mother had dreams that her daughter would learn French and become an actress in French cinema. Well, she has fulfilled those dreams in her latest role as a renowned psychiatrist in “A Private Life”, a dark comedy/mystery thriller directed by Rebecca Zlotowski. It marks the first time the Oscar winner has played a leading role in French. Perhaps for that aspect alone, the film will be a curious watch for some, but those who know Zlotowski’s work should agree that any new film from the French artist is worth checking out.

In this modern-day tale, Foster plays Lilian Steiner, an American-born, renowned psychiatrist working in France, who is stunned when she learns one of her patients has died.  The concerning part of this is that Paula Cohen-Solal (Virginie Efira) apparently committed suicide by way of prescription medications. This concerns Lilian because she’s the one who prescribed the medication, and Pauline has shown no suicidal ideations in any of her recent sessions.

Lilian becomes suspicious once she meets Paula’s daughter, Valérie Cohen-Solal (Luàna Bajrami), and even more so when Pauline’s ex-husband, Simon Cohen-Solal (Mathieu Amalric), becomes enraged when Lilian makes a shiva call. It could be he’s just mad that Pauline confided more in Lilian than her husband, or just that she was the one who prescribed the medication. This adds to Lilian’s suspicions that her patient was murdered, especially after a curious visit from Valérie.

Once this is established, Zlotowski, who co-wrote the screenplay with Anne Berest and Gaëlle Macé, adds a murder-mystery plot to the character study, which becomes aware of its degree of silliness. Lilian’s ex, local ophthalmologist Gabriel Haddad (Daniel Auteuil), is still a friend (a tolerant one at that) and ends up getting pulled into Lilian’s sleuthing to make sure she doesn’t get into trouble. It’s also an excuse to be with her, since “Gabby,” as she still calls him, obviously still has feelings for her. With the police dismissing her theories for lack of evidence, and her former therapist, Dr. Goldstein (played by director Frederick Wiseman), thinking she’s just wracked with guilt, Lilian feels Gabby is the only one she can rely on.

As the two conduct surveillance and stake out suspects, someone breaks into Lilian’s private office and steals one of the minidiscs she uses during her patient sessions. Clearly, that cannot be a coincidence. Is someone watching Lilian as she pursues the truth?

What becomes clear early on in “A Private Life” is that the mystery in “A Private Life” isn’t as intriguing as its protagonist, and that absolutely has to do with what Foster does with Lilian. Right from the start, it’s humorous how done she is with her profession. Zlotowski supports Lilian’s resignation by including a montage of clients that finds Foster glazed over and checking out. It’s a reminder that “mental health days” are needed for therapists, too.

Before learning of Pauline’s death, Lilian realizes that Paula has missed her appointment, which is when another patient barges into her office. Pierre (Noam Morgensztern) first started seeing Lilian a decade ago to get in kicking his smoking addiction. He’s there to complain that it only took thirty minutes with a hypnotist (Sophie Guillemin) to kick the habit, and now he wants to be repaid the $40,000 he spent on therapy, or he’ll sue her. Baffled by his claim and demand, it seems like another item to add to her internal “What Am I Doing With My Life?” list.

Perhaps Lilian becomes obsessed with Pauline’s death because it breaks the mundanity of her job, and also because she may have some underlying feelings for her patient that she hasn’t addressed. That last part surfaces after her session with the aforementioned hypnotist, which results in a surreal, life-like dream sequence that she revisits, in which she and Pauline are celloists in an orchestra conducted by an intense Simon, who at times brandishes a gun aimed at Pauline. Lilian isn’t able to do much in this dreamscape besides watch. Does that speak to the helplessness she feels in other areas of her life? But, is this truly a mystery or a manifestation of Lilian’s own revelations about her subconscious feelings for Paula?

It’s obvious why Zlotowski has cast Virginia Efira as Paulina, the mysterious woman we mostly see in flashbacks. Efira, who was in Zlotowski’s last feature, 2022’s “Other People’s Children”, is known for having a luminous, sensual presence in other films, so it’s fitting for her to portray this mysterious patient here. Zlotowski also reunites with cinematographer George Lechaptois and editor Géraldine Mangenot for “A Private Life”,  two artists who also worked on her last feature, and their collaborative work here conjures the work of Francois Ozon or Neil Jordan.

While the cast is enjoyable and the film is visually engaging, there are times when it feels like there’s just too much going on in “A Private Life”. There’s a flimsy subplot involving Lilian and her tenuous relationship with her adult son, Julien (Vincent Lacoste), who is mostly seen at his nearby apartment, taking care of the baby he has with his wife, Vanessa (Park Ji-min). This family dynamic is woefully underexplored, primarily because much of the story is understandably focused on the death that is deeply affecting Lilian. Early in the film, we also see Lilian endure a curious physical response to stress (we assume), as her eyes water, making her appear to be crying. At first, it’s somewhat of a humorous visual bit, but not much is made of it after a while. Despite Foster’s great work here, that can unfortunately be said for much of “A Private Life”.

RATING: **1/2