Two Days, One Night (Deux Jours, Une Nuit) (2014)

The idea is simple and relevant in our time of economic recession. A blue-collar worker suffers a nervous breakdown and takes time off work, after which her management discovers that it doesn't need her.  She is to be laid off unless she can convince her coworkers to forgo their bonuses.  Marion Cotillard plays Sandra, the conflicted woman, desperate to keep her job but ashamed to beg and at times defeatist, balancing hopefulness and hopelessness beautifully. She masterfully gives the audience raw emotion.  These emotions range from tearful elation when she convinces one of her coworkers to vote for her to depressing sleepwalking.  Cotillard is outstanding in any language and was well deserving of her Oscar nomination. The film is engaging throughout.  There is a brilliant twist at the end that both highlights cruelty and humanity, both themes that permeate the whole film.  Finally in the end, one wins out.