There are number of things that can be told that change your life; like getting a call that you got the job you just interviewed for, or news that you’re going to have a baby.

Another less cheery piece of news is that you have cancer.

This French drama explores exactly that, when a young man is told the bad news.

Arriving at the hospital is Nino (Théodore Pellerin); he’s just there to pick up a sick note for work, but when he gets there he’s told he should see a doctor regarding his results. Somewhat confused, he agrees to do so.

He’s then told that the results they got back say he has throat cancer. Thankfully it can be treated, but it has to be fast, so he’s booked in for chemo the following Monday.

Nino leaves the hospital dumb struck, struggling to process the news he’s just received. He tries to go about his day as normal, but when those words ‘you’ve got cancer’ are spoken, there’s no unhearing them, as he instantly finds himself overwhelmed.

Making a stirring directorial debut is Pauline Loqués. It’s a story based on fact, when someone close to her died of cancer. It’s an instant introduction to a young man, just turning 29, as he is rather clumsily told of his predicament. We spend the next few days with him, as he tries to come to terms with his diagnosis, with the overriding emotions being that of numbness and disbelief.

Thankfully he has a few distractions, such as locking himself out of his apartment, pushing this news into the background, albeit however fleeting.

It’s a touching exploration of this initial period, that certainly those who have heard those exact words can probably relate to, with this processing period that can take you utterly by surprise.

Pellerin conveys this emotional journey with great sensitivity, giving the kind of performance that will have those watching, simply want to go up to him and give him a hug.

It also features a remarkably short cameo by Mathieu Amalric, and although brief, is deeply moving.

It’s certainly a fairly uplifting take on what is an unpleasant bombshell to anyone’s life. Through Pauline Loqués’ personal lens, there’s a sense that life can – and will – get in the way of you from drowning in a pool of dark emotions, as this one does, almost forcing Nino into a space of calm and hope.

And in a sense it offers you the following: if you can cope with such news told you, then you can probably cope with cancer itself.

When you consider the usual pattern of characters facing their ‘battle’ with the disease – and the doom and gloom that inevitably follows, Nino’s journey of acceptance is a refreshingly honest take, that is poignant and moving, proving that hearing the worst news of your life doesn’t necessarily have to mean the end of the world.