Saint Omer (12A)

Director

Alice Diop

Cast

Kayije Kagame, Guslagie Malanda, Salimata Kamate, Thomas De Pourquery

Rama is a novelist who attends the trial of Laurence Coly, a young woman accused of killing her 15-month-old daughter. Testimonies from witnesses and Coly’s own words soon shake Rama’s convictions.

Official submission of France for the ‘Best International Feature Film’ category of the 95th Academy Awards in 2023.

In French with English subtitles.

• BBFC Ratings Info (May Contain Spoilers)

  language

  There is infrequent use of strong language (‘f**k’).

  sexual violence and sexual threat

  There is a brief, undetailed reference to female genital mutilation. A woman is accused of lying to her partner, saying that she had an illness which prevented her from getting pregnant.

  theme

  There are upsetting scenes, including multiple instances in which characters discuss the murder of a fifteen month old child, who was drowned in the sea and whose body washed up on the sand. References are made to a character’s poor mental health, and it is implied that as a result of this, the character experienced bouts of depression and nightmarish visions. Characters discuss a mutually abusive romantic relationship, in which a woman hid her pregnancy from her partner, whilst he tried to hide their relationship entirely from others. There are implied references to poor treatment a woman received from her mother as a child.

  Discriminatory remarks are made, including a professor’s assertion that a Senegalese woman should research something closer to her own culture rather than an Austrian philosopher. There are sex references, including a woman enquiring about a couple’s lack of use of contraception. In scenes from a film, it is implied a woman murders her two sons. There is fleeting sight of blood on the clothes of a character. Characters smoke cigarettes.

• Seating Accessibility Information

  Cinema

  Seat size

  Seats in the Cinema are 45cm (172/3“) wide and 46cm (18“) deep, are 40cm (152/3“) from the floor, and have 12cm (42/3“) between seats.

  Armrests

  Seats in the Cinema have armrests that do not fold away, and cannot be completely removed.

  Legroom

  Seats in the cinema have 30cm (112/3”) of legroom in front of seats, with additional legroom on row A and seats B1-B4 and B11-B14.

  Further information

  If you have any questions about accessibility our Box Office team are always happy to help and can be contacted on 01642 525199 or by emailing box.office@arconline.co.uk - you can also tell us about your access requirements when prompted to do so during the online booking process.

• Information about screenings with subtitles

  Subtitled screenings offer captions which transcribe dialogue only. Subtitled screenings attempt to give D/deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers an understanding of the spoken dialogue within the film, but do not include description about other aspects of the soundtrack, including music and sound effects.