Al, a young man from a modest background is about to marry his boss’ daughter, along with succeeding him as the head of a car dealership.
One night, while coming back from his bachelor party, he is guilty of a hit-and-run accident, urged by his two childhood friends present in the car.
The next day, gnawed with guilt, Al decides to inquire about his victim. What he does not know is that Juliette, a young woman, has witnessed the entire accident from her balcony. She is the one who had called 911 and helped the victim’s wife Vera, a Moldavian illegal-immigrant.
But when Juliette recognizes Al as the reckless driver in the hospital corridor, she is unable to denounce him…
Honours/Awards
Selection Officielle Un Certain Regard Cannes 2012
Adèle’s role
Marion. Fiancée of Al, a car salesman who works for her father. Supporting role.
Excerpts from reviews
I could not find a review that mentioned Adèle, as her role was small.
Comments
Claire Mathon was cinematographer on this film, the second of Adèle's films Claire shot.
“Claire Mathon’s moody widescreen cinematography gives a certain sumptuousness to the agonizing conflicts.”
Adéle was also attached to Catherine Corsini’s 2015 film La Belle Saison for some time, but ended up not being in the film. That role was taken by Izïa Higelin, who co-starred with Adéle in Un Peuple et son Roi.
Interview with Catherine Corsini & Adèle Haenel [FR]
This is Catherine Corsini's 16th film and her fourth film to be included in the Cannes Film Festival. She sets it up so that from the opening scene I was anxious—three, apparently drunk, men are doing stupid things with a fast car. Nothing good can come of the combination of drunk men (or women) and fast cars... The film keeps that anxiety going throughout, as the main characters deal with the aftermath of a night of poor decisions by some of them. Adèle's character, Marion, among others, is collateral damage of the events of the night.
Adèle has a supporting role in this film and, as always, her performance is powerful, though her screen time is limited. She plays young love brilliantly, with all the excitement of a new bride, and her portrayal of heartbreak is so real that it brought back my experiences of all the trauma and angst when a relationship is broken by the other and you have no agency over what is happening (yes, I know that I'm projecting my own experiences here, but that's what a great performance evokes). I know that I am biased (otherwise why would I be writing this?), but she is fabulous in every role I have seen her in (which is, I think, all if them except Goldman, which I am yet to find...Please let me know if you know where I can source it.) Also in a supporting role in this film is Reda Kateb. In 2015 Adèle was awarded the Prix Romy Schneider for "a young and upcoming actress working in theFrench film industry" and Reda Kateb was awarded the equivalent prize for a male actor, the Prix Patrick Dewear. Other winners of the Prix Romy Schneider that you may know include Céline Sallette (L'Apollonide, Un Peuple et son Roi) and Adèle Exarchopoulos (Orpheline).
As a bonus today I also re-watched La Belle Saison, the later Catherine Corsini film that Adèle was attached to but ended up not being in. It is a lesbian romance with numerous actors that Adéle will later work with—Izïa Higelin, who takes the role that Adèle was slated for, is with her in Un Peuple et son Roi (2017), Noémie Lvovsky is also in Un Peuple et son Roi and was with Adele in L'Apollonide (2011), and Kevin Azais is with Adèle in Les Combattants (2014). Its representation of the feminist movement in 1970s Paris is great. The women sing feminist anthems and it made me think of the revolutionary women singing in Un Peuple et son Roi and of the women protesters on the night of the 2020 César awards. I really like the way that French women seem to sing (and sing well) at protests—that doesn't happen where I am, as we don't have a culture of public singing, but I think protests would be better if we did.
In the credits of this film Corsini and the producer include Céline Sciamma in their thanks.
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