The first The Search trailer has arrived for Oscar-winning The Artist director Michel Hazanavicius’ upcoming drama.  The film is a re-imagining of the 1948 film of the same name and takes place in 1999 during the Second Chechen War.  Hazanavicius’ The Artist star Bérénice Béjo plays a European Union delegation head who comes across a young orphaned refugee and takes him in.  At the same time, the boy’s elder sister searches for him in vain amongst the civilian exodus.  The pic stands in sharp contrast to the light and comedic The Artist, as Hazanavicius opted to cash-in his Oscar clout on this dramatic passion project.  The trailer ranges from incredibly promising to borderline Lifetime-level drama, but I’m extremely curious to see how the full film turns out.

Hit the jump to watch the debut The Search trailer.  The film also stars Annette Bening and is premiering in competition at the Cannes Film Festival.  There’s no U.S. release date just yet, but it’s certainly possible that Hazanavicius could find himself in the midst of awards season once again later this year.

Here’s the synopsis for The Search:

The Second Chechen War. 1999. THE SEARCH recounts, on a human scale, a powerful story of conflict told through four lives that will be brought together by a shocking twist of fate. After his parents are killed in their village, a small boy flees, joining the flood of refugees. He meets Carole, a European Union delegation head and little by little, with her help, he will return to life. At the same time, his elder sister Raïssa searches tirelessly for him amongst the civilian exodus. Then there’s 20-year-old Kolia… A recent Russian Army recruit, he will gradually be overwhelmed by the daily life of wartime.

Watch the trailer below, followed by a poster via The Playlist.

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