Rosalie uses a historical setting to ask how much space society allows people who do not fit its expectations. Stéphanie Di Giusto's sensitive drama is strongest through its central performance and intimate images.
Rosalie has concealed her facial hair to appear acceptable to others. Her husband Abel initially knows little about that part of her life. Choosing to let her beard grow challenges both the marriage and the people around them, while also becoming connected to their struggling inn.
Nadia Tereszkiewicz is outstanding. Her determination remains emotionally involving even within rejection and uncertainty. Benoît Magimel gives Abel conflicting responses rather than one fixed attitude, and their relationship develops credibly.
Di Giusto makes the period story feel relevant through questions of acceptance and self-definition. The camera stays attentive to intimate moments, emphasizing the distance between Rosalie's sense of herself and the expectations placed on her.
Some narrative elements are predictable, the middle section drags, and several supporting characters receive too little emotional depth. For me, those weaknesses do not remove the film's value. Rosalie is a moving drama about love and self-acceptance, with a lead performance strong enough to make its refusal of imposed norms feel personal rather than merely symbolic.