Multiple timelines and surroundings dissolve into one another in this French drama Hold Me Tight, which very purposefully develops an ambivalence about what is real and imaginary. With cuts that lean heavily on sound, both overlaid and oozing from one scene to the next, it stars Vicky Krieps as Clarisse, a woman who has seemingly abandoned her husband and children. Some neat cinematic tricks heighten the movie from the director and writer Mathieu Amalric - best known for having played Dominic Greene, the main villain in Quantum of Solace.
Amalric presents the film with the brushstrokes of a family tragedy and a prevailing depressive spirit that bleeds from nearly every frame. It tells of the pain of letting go and…