Louder Than Bombs

A favorite at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, the English-language debut of celebrated Norwegian director Joachim Trier—whose first two features, Reprise and Oslo, August 31st both screened at New Directors/New Films—continues his tradition of rich, multilayered narratives with this moving portrait of a fractured family. Three years after the death of famed photographer Isabelle Reed (Isabelle Huppert), her husband and two sons are still coping with their loss. Gene (Gabriel Byrne) struggles as a single parent, but is taking steps toward a new relationship. Jonah (Jesse Eisenberg), now a father himself, finds the transition from child to parent more than a little daunting, while his younger brother Conrad (Devin Druid) resists their dad’s every attempt to connect. When Jonah returns home to help Gene organize Isabelle’s photos for a retrospective of her work, the three of them are once again under the same roof, faced with difficult memories and unearthed secrets—including the truth behind the mysterious circumstances of Isabelle’s death. Shifting between past and present, and juxtaposing external reality with privileged glimpses into its characters’ lives, Louder Than Bombs captures the sadness of losing a loved one as it simultaneously celebrates the importance of family.