Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Sibyl Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman April 30, 2022

Considering its title and the fact that this film deals at least tangentially with mental illness and a therapist, one might be forgiven for thinking this is just the latest revisionist reboot, this time of Sybil, which, depending on your orthographic sensibilities and/or interest in Ancient Greece and those prone to prophecy, either reversed the vowel placement or got it right when compared to the title spelling of the film currently under review. Perhaps surprisingly, then, it may come as something of a shock to hear co-writer and director Justine Triet actually overtly state in an interview included on this disc as a supplement that this particular Sibyl actually owes its cinematic life to Woody Allen's 1988 opus Another Woman . In what might be thought of as the cinematic equivalent of Russian nesting dolls, while the general setup of the Allen film, along with some of its key art, might almost automatically remind some film fans of Ingmar Bergman's Persona, Allen was evidently overtly on record as stating that it was actually Bergman's Wild Strawberries which inspired the film. That's a pretty heady "lineage" any way you slice it, but one way or the other it may at least subliminally indicate that, as Alexandra Heller Nicholas mentions in the commentary track also included on this disc as a supplement, this Sibyl is a piece of almost constantly moving parts, as visually evidenced by an opening vignette featuring a so-called Kaiten-sushi restaurant where a seemingly unending series of foodstuffs on a conveyor belt passes by focal character Sibyl (Virginie Efira) as another character drones on about Sibyl's apparently rocky career as a writer.

Now Triet does in fact have a "treat" in store for those coming with any Sybil preconceptions, as it turns out the supposed "writer" looking pretty baffled by some perhaps unwelcome and unasked for feedback on her supposed literary career in the film's opening vignette is actually a therapist, though Sibyl would very much like to be working full time as a crafter of fiction. Unfortunately she's perhaps ironically (given any presumed subtext of neurosis as the cause) suffering from writer's block, and is at a loss as to how best to proceed. Perhaps fortuitously, or, if she were Jungian and a believer in synchronicity, Sibyl gets a "double feature" (a deliberate pun, but more about that later) answer when a distraught actress named Margot Vasilis (Adèle Exarchopoulos) comes pretty much begging for help and whose personal and professional problems Sibyl more or less quickly deems absolutely perfect to use as the basis for a novel.

Now that's the basic premise and underlying foundational conceit that propels Sibyl, but it is the veritable tip of a very deep iceberg that may in fact may sink the film's chances for complete coherence. Not only is there a glut of flashback material, with various interrelationships in various timelines fraught with both sexual tension ( and sex) and melodramatic emotional aspects, there's ultimately another kind of Russian nesting doll structure that ends up bringing in a whole "meta" aspect in terms of the film that Margot is shooting. In that regard, I'm not sure whether everyone will agree with Alexandra Heller-Nicholas' assertion that the freewheeling assortment of ideas and intersecting plot pieces are the sign of unabashed genius (which they very well may be), or simply a mind boggling aggregation of ideas that are admittedly fascinating but which may never completely congeal as an organic narrative whole.

This is nonetheless a fascinating film from any number of standpoints, not the least of which are the two extremely enjoyable lead performances from Efira and Exarchopoulos. In that regard, it may be salient to note that the two actresses obviously have very different physical features, as if to suggest that Triet wanted anyone thinking of the two as different facets of the same character be instantly disabused of that notion. However, that may play into the underlying irony of Sibyl almost submerging herself in Margot's persona, which in itself is yet another "meta" reflection of the fact that it's Margot who is the actress.

Sibyl Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sibyl is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Music Box Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb lists the Arri Alexa Mini and I'm assuming the DI was finished at 2K. This is a very appealing looking transfer for the most part, and the palette is really gorgeously vivid a lot of the time, especially in some deeply burnished reds, purples and golds. A prevalence of blue is also on tap, both in costumes and props as well as some actual backgrounds once things get to a seaside locale. Fine detail is typically excellent throughout, and I'd simply recommend parsing through some of the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review, where you can spot things like ribbing or pill on various fabrics as one indication of how precise things are. There are a couple of kind of slightly rough looking moments (see screenshot 7), and I'm wondering if a couple of establishing shots might have been sourced from stock footage, but overall this is a very impressively sharp, well detailed and colorful looking transfer.

Sibyl Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Sibyl features either DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 or DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 tracks. This is a pretty talk heavy enterprise, but the surround track definitely opens things up in terms of both ambient environmental effects (not necessarily limited only to outdoor material), but also a rather eclectic supply of source cues scattered throughout the soundtrack. All dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly. Both optional standard English and English SDH subtitles are available.

Sibyl Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Feature Audio Commentary by Film Critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas


• Interviews with Director Justine Triet and the Cast (HD; 21:30) also include star Virginie Efira, Paul Hamy, Niels Schneider, and Adèle Exarchopoulos. Subtitled in French.


• Teasers (HD; 2:02)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:03)


• Photo Gallery (HD)

Typically I get standard retail versions of product for review purposes, but in this case Music Box sent a copy with a nice heavy cardstock slipcover, which I am assuming is of this limited edition packaging, which we're showing as being available from Vinegar Syndrome. If anyone gets a slipcover with an ostensible non-limited edition order, private message me and I can update this review as necessary.

Sibyl Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Sibyl would almost seem to be aiming for so-called "psychological thriller" territory, but if that's the case, there's a decided lack of any real suspense or feeling of danger, unless one perceives the emotional breakdown of at least one and potentially two women to be inherently dangerous (which, again, it may very well be). And this twisty, turny, almost obsessively multilayered plot would also seem to be moving to some mind blowing M. Night Shyamalan sized twist which never really arrives. That said, Sibyl is often quite intriguing, and there's a certain sense of playfulness that Triet brings to the enterprise that may help it to elide a few bumps along the way. Technical merits are solid and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.