MvS a master of the art here. Completely convincing, never over acting. Always left me wanting to know more about how Joubert came to be.

Yes. And credit where it's due when it comes to Redford: he is the star but nevertheless he doesn't try to steal back the scene from Max, and the result is amazing.

(I'm not a film nerd, but perhaps some credit is due to whoever edited that scene as well. The end of the scene hits pretty hard.)