Day 2. Déchainées (2009)

Déchaînées

Our second film in the festival is a television movie from Switzerland, filmed in Geneva in December 2008. This role gave Adèle a solo leading role in a film. Her performance is nuanced and delicate and she shows her ability to play both drama and fun.

Trailer:

 

https://youtu.be/KS2FQFnLapA

English Title

UnleaSHEd (German Title: Frau und Frei)

Year
2009

Director
Raymond Vouillamoz

Synopsis
Nineteen-year-old Lucie discovers that her grandmother was a notorious, militant feminist in Geneva during the 1970s before being suddenly erased from the family history. Lucie sets out on a search for her. When the two finally meet face to face, the heavy secret that has put such a strain on the women of her family for three generations bursts into the open and forces the young woman to take a stand on her own feminist commitment and its consequences for her love life and on her unwelcome pregnancy.

Honours/Awards

     • Adèle: Prix d’interprétation féminine Festival du Film de Genève

• Geneva International Film Festival: Prix Swiss perform pour le meilleur film de télévision suisse 2009

     • Erasmus Euromedia Awards, Medal of Excellence-Fictional Programme 2010

Adèle’s role
Lucie, 19, intern at Swiss Television. Solo lead role.

Excerpts from reviews

I couldn’t find any reviews online, but as it is a television movie this is not too surprising. Given the award for best television film and best performance prize for Adèle we can see that the movie was well received and Adèle’s performance was recognised as exceptional.

Comments

This is a television movie and is Adèle’s first solo leading role. She has commented about expanding her skills as an actress through making a TV movie, as the time pressure when making a film for television means that there are fewer takes and the shooting process is faster than for feature films.

I think that this film, which I like a lot, showed directors that Adèle could carry a film and it showcased her acting range—from playful big sister to young woman facing major life decisions. She shows her mastery of a wide range of acting capabilities, even this early in her career.

Rewatch Comments
I've just rewatched this film and enjoyed it. As a film it is a bit heavy-handed and didactic, but still enjoyable. It's not great art, but not that many movies achieve that level... On the up side, Adèle has lots of screen time and she is great in it. Before watching Déchainées I had not known how late Swiss women got the vote and learned that, so I guess being didactic isn't a crime when there are things to teach and that people should know about. 
  Adèle was about the same age as the character that she is portraying (19 years) when she made this, unlike many US films where 30 year olds play teenagers. The dynamic that she has with her screen-sister is gorgeous—playful, annoyed, and annoying, while also being very loving. A nice portrayal of sisterhood.

This movie was made in late 2008, just over two years after Naissance des Pieuvres was filmed, and, from what I can gather, at about this time Adèle was still in formal education (she has never stopped learning & educating herself!) and was in the process of shifting from student to young actress. In 2009 she was in the short film Adieu Molitor, but then she doesn't make another film until 2011, when she is in four movies and has made the clear commitment to being an actress. One of these, En Ville, is our movie to watch tomorrow.