How we look at something can determine its value in many ways. Consider a drawing done by a young child. It's not likely to fetch a high price at an art auction, but parents may not take any amount of money for it and place it with pride on the refrigerator door. And what makes the Mona Lisa of more value than an almost identical copy of it?

What if we take that same concept and apply it to people and relationships? Does the relationship we perceive affect how we judge what is happening?

In Certified Copy we watch Elle spending a day with James, an English writer who has just published a book arguing that copies can be just as valuable as an original. It depends on the value we assign to it. As they talk about his thesis, they consider Elle's assistant who has a stammering husband who might seem unattractive to others, but is the world to her. Even the way he says her name is precious to her.

As the film goes on we also begin to apply this concept to the relationship between Elle and James. Are they mere acquaintances or something more? About half way through the film, a woman mentions to Elle that James is a good husband. Does something about the way they act make her think they are married? Do we think they are married? Does it make us interpret the things they say and do differently?

This brings us back the idea in James's book. What is the real relationship here, and what is counterfeit? Does it matter? Is what goes on between them real or are they playing some sort of game?

I think it important that this is such an international endeavor. It is directed by Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami, set in Italy, and starring French actress Juliette Binoche and English actor William Shimell. There is not common point of view, and yet there is a universality to the experience. The reflection of marriage that we see here (whether it is real or not) allows us to consider just what makes marriage valuable and what can make it lose its value through the years.

This film has the depth of a great work of art. The more we look at it the more we notice, and the more it may mean to us. There is a depth to this film that we don't often experience. Much of the film is just these two people talking. I was reminded of the Eric Rohmer film My Night at Maud's, which also was two people talking about many things and reflecting on marriage. Rohmer's film is a bit more into philosophical musings, but Certified Copy is not afraid to dig much deeper than many viewers might expect. Consider, for instance, the role of wine and bread. Does it imply there is something sacramental in this relationship? If so, what do we make of who will and will not partake? What of their attitudes toward these (possible) symbols?

And of course, we come back to the central premise of perspective and its influence on interpretation. Maybe the wine and bread is just wine and bread—it's Italy, after all. Maybe the stories they tell each other and the people they meet are interesting fictions, but fictions can convey great truths. How will the film play if we approach it with one set of assumptions instead of another? I'm looking forward to seeing this film again (and maybe yet again) to let it play in my mind.