Raphaëlle Molinier Movies
- 2004
One man finds himself pulled in three directions at once by his family and a chance acquaintance in this breakneck comedy. Miguel (Jacques Gamblin) is a single parent and Spanish expatriate living in Belgium who has to deal with a young daughter, Laura (Raphaelle Molinier), his busybody mother, Abuelita (Carmen Maura), and his pushy brother, Juan (Pedro Romero). Miguel works for Juan's travel agency as a courier and errand boy. Shortly after sending Laura off to school, Juan gets an urgent call from Miguel and he has to head to the airport. En route, Miguel gets caught in a traffic jam and encounters Sonia (Ingeborga Dapkunaite), an illegal alien from the Ukraine who is on the run from police after being freed from custody by a group of activists. Sonia has been searching for her boyfriend who disappeared in Belgium a year ago, and after much haranguing Miguel agrees to help her, but that's before he gets word from Abuelita that an accident has sent his daughter to the hospital. Fortunately Laura's injuries are minor, but once Laura and Abuelita hear Sonia's story, they decide to drop everything to help her find her man with Miguel along for the ride, regardless of Juan's feelings about the matter (or Miguel's, for that matter). 25 Degres en Hiver was the first feature film from writer and director Stéphane Vuillet. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carmen Maura, Jacques Gamblin, (more)
Carnage, an example of what the French call un film chorale, tells several intertwining stories. In the central tale, a young second-generation bullfighter, Victor (Julien Lescarret), is gored, and is rushed to the hospital in critical condition. A little girl, Winnie (Raphaëlle Molinier), sits next to a massive Great Dane and watches the fateful bullfight on television, and becomes obsessed with the bull. A university researcher, Jacques (Jacques Gamblin of Safe Conduct), cheats on his massively pregnant wife, Betty (Lio), who hides a critical fact about her pregnancy from him. Jacques' brother, Luc (Bernard Sens), an amateur taxidermist, lives with their mother, Rosie (Esther Gorintin), who loves him, but withholds a family secret. Winnie's teacher, Jeanne (Lucia Sanchez), struggles to understand her neurotic mother, Alicia (Ángela Molina), when she visits. When her car is dented by a shopping cart, Carlotta (Chiara Mastroianni), a struggling actress, meets Alexis (Clovis Cornillac), a suicidal philosopher/skater who offers to lead her to the culprits. Carnage, the debut feature from writer/director Delphine Gleize, won the Sutherland Trophy at the 2002 London Film Festival and Best Screenplay at the 2002 Stockholm Film Festival. It was also shown at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival and at Lincoln Center in New York as part of their 2003 Rendez-Vouz with French Cinema. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chiara Mastroianni, Ángela Molina, (more)
