Being at Home with Claude (1992)

This French Canadian psychological drama begins as 27 year-old gay hustler Yves (Roy Dupuis) is having sex with his lover Claude (Jean-François Pichette). During the climactic moment, he grabs a knife and cuts the throat of his partner, then flees to the streets of Montreal where he pauses only long enough to make a phone call. Yves is captured and an Inspector (Jacques Godin) badgers him in search of a conventional motive. The dialogue, delivered in gutter Canadian French, ricochets between the two. Tempers flare, old ground is covered and recovered, yet still Yves refuses to cooperate. Next he is in a judge's chamber undergoing interrogation. He freely admits the crime but refuses to explain why he did it. Nor does he explain why he is in the judge's chamber or why he called the press. There’s not much of a plot, but it has several black and white flashbacks to illustrate Yves’ story. Then suddenly the pace changes, with a flashback of the night Yves and Claude met. Starting in a gay club, it progresses to a park where a sexually confused Claude tries to pick up Yves, then they go to Claude’s apartment. The experienced Yves guides Claude gently through the process with sensitivity and tenderness . It finally resolves into a half-hour monologue by Yves explaining himself, to make them understand the reason for his crime, resulting in a startling explanation--a mixture of horror and poignancy. Based on the play by René-Daniel Dubois, this very good film was directed by Jean Beaudin. In French with English sub-titles, the title is identical in English and French.

Le Temps qui Reste (2006)

Romain (Melvil Poupaud), a cocky 31-year-old fashion photographer, finds out he is terminally ill with a metastized brain tumor and has only three months to live. Keeping his illness secret, he breaks up with his boyfriend Sasha (Christian Sengewald), antagonizes his sister Sophie (Louise-Anne Hippeau), and goes against his doctor's (Henri de Lorme) advice to give chemotherapy a chance because it only offers him a slim (less than 5%) chance of survival. Staring in the mirror, he remembers the sea and himself as a child. Cruel facing death, Romain pushes people away, knowing his good looks give him the freedom to test the people who care for him. He visits his grandmother Laura (Jeanne Moreau) to tell her, and on the way he chats briefly with a waitress. He looks at old photos, visits a childhood tree house, and takes pictures. Returning from his grandmother's, he stops for food and sees the waitress Jany (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi) again. She makes a request. Romain travels around with a small digital camera, capturing moments that are very different from the fashion shoots he is used to. Nearly everywhere he goes, Romain sees himself as a child (Ugo Soussan Trabelsi), as the past invades his temporary present. Wonderfully acted and intelligently written and directed by François Ozon, this is a challenging, compelling work with a great ending. In French with English sub-titles, the English title is "Time to Leave".