There’s so little going on in The Two of Us that one has to begin thinking of it as an idyll-fable, which has never been my idea of a good time.

Anyone who ever managed to open up, as a child, to an older relative or friend whose noxious views still confounded them will recognize the sly, small bargains that Claude makes with himself.

The film's good humour and discretion, plus Simon's virtuoso performance, make it never less than watchable.

[Claude Berri's] debut stands as one his most accomplished achievements, and is a masterwork of haunting WWII and coming-of-age cinema.