Michael Haneke is one of our greatest living filmmakers. A true master of the form. Two-time Palme D’or winner. What a rush to see him open his newest film with the greatest sin in the history of recorded video: the dreaded vertical video. I’m even hesitant to include the poster I’ve included for this review. The aspect ratio just doesn’t feel right, but Haneke is a master and when he breaks a rule, he breaks it for a reason. The opening sequence made up of four cell phone shots with narration in text from whoever is filming is an absolutely haunting opening that calls back to earlier Haneke films such as Benny’s Video and Cache, but here we are given a modern twist.

The comparisons to earlier Haneke don’t stop there. He is still torturing the bourgeoisie and tearing away at upper-class families and their white guilt. There even seems to be a direct reference to Haneke’s previous film, Amour, almost implying that this is a sequel of sorts. The title implies that you are in for an easier experience than in Amour, but this is a Haneke film and we have to assume the title of the film is somewhat ironic, right? This is the director who made the horrific film Funny Games after all. I won’t spoil the accuracy of the title, but I will say that this is the first Haneke film I’ve seen where the closing credits were met with applause AND laughter.

Happy End follows the Laurent family. Twelve-year old Eve (Fantine Harduin) moves in with her father, Thomas, (Matthieu Kassovitz) after her mom is sent to the hospital from a pill overdose. She is despondent and disconnected and it is obvious she harbours some darkness beneath the surface. Thomas is married and has a new son. When we first see him, it is through the lens of a cellphone and after the opening, it is immediately disquieting. We learn through a series of kinky facebook messages that Thomas is having an affair.

A disaster on a construction site belonging to the family’s firm is found to be caused by neglect and Thomas’ sister, Anne, (Isabelle Huppert) deals with the fallout as the acting CEO. The former boss, their father, Georges (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is now bound to a wheelchair, having given up the reins to his company years before when his wife fell ill. Now widowed, he seems desperate for a way out. It seems he finds his match in the family’s new addition. The performances here are all strong. A scene where Georges tells Eve about the death of her grandmother is a brilliant moment of child acting that calls back to the best scenes in The White Ribbon.

It seems easy to write Happy End off as a retread of Haneke. He explored youth disaffected by media to the point of violence in Benny’s Video (1992), but the update is timely. In the past year we have seen multiple cases of horrible murders, assaults, attacks streamed on social media platforms. Haneke uses these new virtual tools to outstanding effect, building tension and causing unease due to the audience’s familiarity with the platform. I honestly don’t think anyone has presented Facebook live or messenger in such an engaging and cinematic way before. Haneke is 75 and he is fluent in the technological language of modern children.

The plot jumps from time to time, skipping over huge events and Haneke’s sadistic habit of withholding information and emotion continues. There are some lovely surprises near the end, but not where you would be expecting them. The tension builds to a crescendo that never arrives and there would be a feeling of anti-climax if not for a final shot, again with the vertical framing, that puts a lovely, ironic bow on the otherwise bleak experience. This may not be as great as The White Ribbon or as devastating as Amour, but I enjoyed the film very much and look forward to a second viewing.