Two Seconds (1932)

For professional athletes, all aspects of life are viewed through the concentrated lens of their sport.

Director Manon Briand brilliantly offers a glance through such a lens in 2 Seconds as she captures what it means for a champion mountain-bike racer to embrace life after she is forced to end her career. After discovering a gray hair, Laurence pauses at the start gate before hurtling down a mountain in an otherwise flawless run.

The hesitation costs her the championship by two seconds, and she is forced into retirement. Without a race to train for, she is disoriented and confused and moves to the city with her nerdy brother, Steffan. Unable to do anything but repair and ride her bike, she is thrilled to discover the career of courier.

However, her fellow messengers provide uneasy camaraderie, and her obsession with speed and distance are not compatible with delivering numerous packages in the financial district. By chance, she meets Lorenzo, a cantankerous Italian bike shopkeeper and retired speed cyclist.

They clash at first, but their mutual love and appreciation of cycling draw them together. They share stories and reveal scars, both physical and emotional. Lorenzo helps ripen Laurence's heart for romance. Briand's delightfully entertaining script and direction couple irresistibly with Charlotte Laurier's performance as Laurence.

Her single-minded pursuit of her passion for cycling creates an innocence in the story that is both charming and inspirational. 2 Seconds is a well-crafted film about the redeeming virtue of staying true to what you love most.