Black Box 4K 2021

Sometimes you get completely absorbed in what you’re doing. Whether it’s writing an article, painting a picture, or editing a photo. And what else might a person get so absorbed in that they don’t notice the day passing by, or hear the voices of those around them asking questions? Getting to the bottom of the truth and seeing what you’ve started through to its logical conclusion—this is sometimes the very barrier that separates fiction from reality. And sometimes these attempts even lead to strained relationships with close family members. It’s no wonder that almost all famous pioneers—in a wide variety of fields—were a bit eccentric and led reclusive lives. When you’re deeply absorbed in your work, you inevitably have to make sacrifices—of something or someone.

For aviation analyst Mathieu, this is precisely the moment he’s facing in his life. He works at the French Flight Operations Bureau, and with his keen, unique sense of hearing, he decodes flight recorders and identifies the causes of other malfunctions by ear. When a state-of-the-art airliner crashes on the Dubai–Paris route with 300 passengers on board, Mathieu isn’t immediately assigned to transcribe the data. It’s all because of his disagreements with his department head. The analyst is so meticulous in his work that management isn’t always eager to assign him to important cases. Nevertheless, Mathieu does eventually gain full access to this case, which brings him unexpected discoveries and theories with each passing day—ones that neither his friends nor his colleagues can believe.

Pierre Niney (who plays Matthieu), once a handsome French comedy actor, quietly and swiftly shifts his acting style here. It’s an excellent, understated performance in which Niné—wearing headphones for most of the film—masterfully conveys emotion through his eyes. It is in those eyes that the full horror of his suspicions and unspoken truths is revealed. Theories about the plane crash follow one another in rapid succession. Amid this chaos of jarring sounds, the analyst’s stance is clearly visible—this is his life’s work, and it will not let him go. He is already completely immersed in this whirlpool of ideas, and no one will be able to pull him out until he gets to the bottom of it.