Critics the world over are lauding Glenn Close for her subtle portrayal here, with many calling it the best performance of a stellar career. When literary titan Joe Castleman (Jonathan Pryce) gets the call from Sweden saying he is the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, his wife of 40 years, Joan (Glenn Close), seems to be as ecstatic as he is. “Seems” is the key word, though, as Joan’s cool and collected exterior hides more than a few conflicted emotions. Björn Runge’s deft and intelligent tragicomedy digs deep into Joan and Joe’s relationship, flashing back to university days and revealing how Joan sacrificed her own potential career to serve as the dedicated wife of a literary lion. Pryce and Christian Slater — as the great man’s would-be biographer — do fine work, but it is Close who commands the screen whenever she appears. It’s a marvelous piece of work in a shrewd and entrancing film.

In conversation with Actress Glenn Close