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The disturbing true story of a young French woman who lied that she was the victim of an anti-Semitic hate crime provides the basis for André Téchiné’s probing drama.

Rosetta’s Émilie Dequenne plays the girl of the title, whose false claims have far-reaching consequences for her mother (Catherine Deneuve), a Jewish lawyer (Michel Blanc) and his fractured brood.

Téchiné doesn’t try to explain Dequenne’s behaviour, instead seeking to explore the kind of climate in which such a fiction could be taken as fact.

Steeped in ambiguity, this Gallic slow-burner has a nagging tension that grips even at its most opaque.

Neil Smith is a freelance film critic and writer who contributes regularly to Heat, SFX and Screen International. He's a long-time member of the London Film Critics’ Circle and was a contributing editor at Total Film for many years.