Iconoclast Quentin Dupieux (remember Rubber’s avenging tire at VIFF 10?) teams up with French megastars Jean Dujardin and Adèle Haenel for this blackly comic look at one man’s love affair with… his fringed buckskin jacket? Georges (Dujardin), recently split from his wife and in a disjointed frame of mind, purchases said vintage jacket (for €8,000!) from a hippie and is immediately transformed – despite the jacket looking ridiculous on him. This is the first hint that Georges may be more than just a bit eccentric. When he throws his previous life in the bin, declares himself a filmmaker, enlists Haenel’s bartender character as his editor, and then vows to rid the world of all other jackets, you realize we are witnessing psychosis in full, chilling manifestation. That this transformation is also hilarious is a duel tribute to Dujardin’s absolute commitment to the role and Dupieux’s straight-faced handling of Georges descent into madness. Singular!

“An enjoyably off-the-wall combination of black comedy and soulful character study… Deerskin turns towards the violent but remains marbled with dark visual and verbal humour. Jean Dujardin maintains an admirable sang froid throughout, giving Georges the courage of his convictions and grounding everything in a sense of reality.” – Allan Hunter, Screen