L’Homme Que L’on Aimait Trop
In the Name of My Daughter; French Riviera.
Year
2014
Director
André Téchiné
Synopsis
1976. When her marriage falls apart, Agnes Le Roux moves back to the South of France from Africa to live with her mother, Renee, owner of the Palais de La Mediterranée casino in Nice. There, Agnes falls in love with Maurice Agnelet, a lawyer and Renee’s business advisor, who is ten years her senior. Maurice continues to have relationships with other women. Agnes is madly in love with him. As a shareholder in the Palais de la Mediterannee casino, Agnes decides to sell what should have been her inheritance to go it alone. A fixed card game threatens the casino’s financial stability. Someone is trying to intimidate her mother. Behind the scenes hangs the shadow of the mafia and Fratoni, the owner of a rival casino, who wants to take over the Palais de la Mediterannee. Agnelet, who has fallen from grace with Renee, introduces Agnes to Fratoni. Fratoni offers her 3 million francs to vote against her mother in the shareholder’s meeting. Agnes accepts the offer. Renee loses control of the casino. Agnes finds it hard to cope with her betrayal. Maurice also distances himself from her. In November 1977, after a failed suicide attempt, Agnes disappears. Her body is never found. Thirty years on, Maurice Agnelet remains the prime suspect in a murder case with no body and no proof of his guilt. Convinced of his involvement, Renee is prepared to fight to the bitter end to see him put behind bars…
Honours/Awards
- Nommé Meilleure Actrice, Lumières De La Presse Étrangère 2015
- Sélection Officielle Festival Cannes 2014 Hors Compétition (Out of Competition)
Adèle’s role
Agnès Le Roux, casino heiress.
Excerpts from reviews
“…Agnès (Adèle Haenel) is the most compelling part of Mr. Téchiné's zippy and drifty interpretation of the events, even with the director's longtime star Catherine Deneuve playing her mother and an opaque Guillaume Canet as Maurice. Ms Haenel, who's an amusing tomboy in the coming 'Love at First Fight' , poignantly portrays how her character's youthful defiance crumples into painful withdrawal in the face of Maurice's manipulation and indifference...”
“…Haenel gives her performance more shadings than one might expect—her sense of guilt as she betrays her mother is superbly underplayed—but her multiple scenes of obsession become redundant.”
“Haenel, as Agnès, is an alluring figure, especially during the first part of the movie as she works through a divorce, a new love and major mommy issues. She ably conveys a perpetual sadness, even in moments of joy. But the emotional arc of the script does her no favors, ultimately reducing her to a desperate depressive with a tendency for stalking.”
“…Whereas Canet rather astonishingly subsumes himself in the role, the lesser-known Haenel (who also stars in Directors’ Fortnight multiple award-winner “Les Combattants”) seems to have been cast for her own tomboyish energy. The actress hardly ever blinks, which can be unsettling, even as it reinforces the character’s defiant independence.”
https://variety.com/2014/film/festivals/cannes-film-festival-in-the-name-of-my-daughter-1201194994/
“Late Téchiné is restrained; late Deneuve is not. The standout performer is Adèle Haenel as the daughter who goes missing: she’s a lively wire.”
Comments
André Téchiné is a legendary French director, so to be chosen to work with him is a massive vote of confidence for an actress. Adèle co-starred with the also legendary Catherine Deneuve (but the less said about her response to #MeToo the better…) in this film—so she got to work with two of the biggest names in French cinema. In interviews Adèle has said that she was nervous working with such greats of French cinema
André Téchiné later co-wrote the screenplay for Quand on a 17 ans (Being 17) with Céline Sciamma.
From an interview with Adèle in 2016
Interview with Adèle
Adèle looking gorgeous on the red carpet at Cannes
Cannes 2014 - André Téchiné seen by Guillaume Canet and Adèle Haenel
Adèle doesn't say anything in this clip of an interview at Cannes (but is nice to watch)
Rewatch Comments
This film is another of Adèle's films where she swims—she has joked that she is "the swimming actress", and in this film she shows her style as an excellent swimmer. Her freestyle and breaststroke scenes could be used as instructional videos on swimming technique.
I find it interesting that Adèle made two films in 2014—one with an established director and big name stars (this one) and the other with a brand new director on his first film (Les Combattants) and an unknown co-star—and it was the film with the new director that garnered the mosts laudits and awards.
Adèle's selection of films to perform in is, she has said in interviews, based on meeting with the director and seeing if they will work together well and that the project will extend and challenge her. I think that Adèle has chosen to perform in a wonderful range of films through seeking challenges and learning opportunities. It has meant that we, by exploring her filmography, have been able to explore such a wide range of films and genres.
"It's always better to receive a prize than a donut," says Adèle Haenel, joking before declaring more seriously. "I take this award as an incentive but, with or without a reward, I would have chosen the same films."
Some images from the film
I really don't like this movie. The story is more common than people can imagine: a man takes advantage of a woman's fragility and love to gain advantages and, unfortunately, she ends up dying.
ReplyDeleteHowever, Adèle's performance in the film was excellent; she is really the highlight of this film.
Yes, she is great in it. The way she shows a woman driven almost to madness with her love is very powerful. She breaks my heart!
ReplyDelete