Virginie Efira

In All of a Sudden (2026), Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto make a long conversation feel like time spent in good company. Efira plays Marie-Lou Fontaine opposite Okamoto’s Mari Morisaki, and their warmth gives Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s discussions of care a reason to continue. We were touched by their companionship because the performances allow the friendship to develop at its own pace. Efira is particularly persuasive here when the talk becomes philosophical: she keeps us interested in the person doing the talking.

Her early romantic comedies include 20 ans d’écart (2013). The timing and small changes of expression that serve her in comedy remain useful when the subject becomes heavier; she need not announce every change of feeling. The turn towards dramatic roles came with Justine Triet’s Victoria (2016) and Paul Verhoeven’s Elle (2016). Triet worked with her again on Sibyl (2019).

We would not use Elle alone to explain her appeal. She has the supporting role of Rebecca in a thriller led by Isabelle Huppert, whose performance is central to our admiration for it. The film is disturbing and often funny, though its elaborate plotting sometimes tries too hard. Their next collaboration, Benedetta (2021), put Efira in the title role of a sexually explicit historical drama, a substantial change from those early romantic comedies.

Hamaguchi’s film is the better starting point for seeing how she works with another performer. Okamoto’s delicacy is as important as Efira’s warmth, and we would not credit either actor alone for making the friendship convincing. The more instructive stretches still need firmer editing, but the performances give the leisurely pace a purpose without making every explanation necessary. Start there if long conversations are your pleasure, and allow for a few that should have ended sooner.