Cezanne and I

Cezanne and I (Cézanne et moi, 2016) is a French historical drama from Danièle Thompson, and you can watch it online on iFILM. It traces the four-decade friendship between painter Paul Cézanne and novelist Émile Zola.

They met as boys in Aix-en-Provence — one born rich, the other poor — and swam in the river, went hungry, and dreamed out loud about glory. Decades on, the scales have tipped. Zola (Guillaume Canet) has the novels, the money and the wife Cézanne (Guillaume Gallienne) once loved, while real recognition keeps slipping past the painter. Their bond curdles into a long argument about talent, envy and betrayal.

Thompson built the film from the men's surviving letters, so it lives in conversation rather than incident. The jealousy on screen is uncomfortably easy to recognise. It's one for viewers who like slow, talky portraits of artists. Stream Cezanne and I (2016) online on iFILM.