Not much is known about Joe (Joaquin Phoenix), the protagonist of Lynne Ramsay’s Cannes-winning thriller, “You Were Never Really Here.” He doesn’t answer when a client asks if he has kids. A woman inquires about how he spends his time — again, no answer. The only thing the audience can be sure of is that Joe’s work involves illegal — but possibly righteous — acts of violence.
That’s what State Senator Votto (Alex Manette) is counting on, anyway. He hires Joe to find and retrieve his missing daughter, Nina (Ekaterina Samsonov), who is apparently the victim of sex trafficking. “McCleary said you were brutal,” Votto mentions, referring to Joe’s boss. “I can be,” Joe replies.
Ramsay took home the Best Screenplay prize at Cannes this year for her work on “You Were Never Really Here.” The director’s previous films include “We Need to Talk About Kevin” and “Ratcatcher.”
Check out the international trailer (with French subtitles) for “You Were Never Really Here” below. It’s being released November 8 as “A Beautiful Day” in Europe. No word on a U.S. premiere yet.
