Jérémie Elkaïm Movies

An outsider becomes a witness to the shocking and sometimes chaotic world of a special police force in this drama from writer and director Maiwenn. The Child Protection Unit is a team of police officers who deal in cases that involve minors, and an ordinary workday finds them dealing with child abuse, youthful thieves, molestation, teen prostitutes, and families on the run from the law. The work is emotionally taxing, and the members of the Child Protection Unit count on each other for support, though they often have issues with one another as well. Nadine (Karin Viard) has a close friendship with Iris (Marina Fois), but in the wake of her divorce, Nadine has becomes jealous of her work partner, which sometimes explodes into vicious arguments. Chrys (Karole Rocher) has just discovered she's having a baby, complicating her relationship with Mathieu (Nicolas Duvauchelle), who is secretly in love with her. And Fred (Joeystarr) is going through a messy divorce that has taken him away from his young daughter, making him volatile and high strung, and while the group leader Balloo (Frederic Pierrot) tries to cover for him, his behavior is hard to explain to those outside the unit. This becomes clear when Melissa (Maiwenn), a photojournalist, is assigned to follow the men and women of the CPU for an upcoming magazine piece and becomes part of their dysfunctional family. Poliss (the title comes from a child's misspelling of the French word for "police") received a Jury Prize at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, and was nominated for fourteen Cesar Awards (the French Oscar), winning two.
~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Fabrice Cazeneuve's coming-out comedy drama You'll Get Over It (Tu Verras, Ca Te Passeras) was originally aired on television in France. Teenage Vincent (Julien Baumgartner) is the golden boy of his high school and family. He's on the swim team, has an adoring girlfriend in Noemie (Julie Maraval), and a loyal best friend in Stephane (Francois Comar). However, he secretly sees an older Bruno (Nils Ohlund) for discreet sexual encounters. When the new kid at school, Benjamin (Jeremie Elkaim), tries to pick him up, everyone finds out his secret. His previously supportive network begins to falter, while his mean older brother Regis (Antoine Michel) eggs them on. You'll Get Over It was screened at the 2003 San Francisco Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

The third collaboration between screenwriter Stephane Bouquet and writer/director Sebastien Lifshitz, Presque Rien is the story of a young French man coming to terms with his mother's depression, and his own homosexuality, during a summer holiday in France. Delicately handsome Mathieu (Jeremie Elkaim) has come to a seaside resort town with his sisters Annick (Marie Matheron) and Sarah (Laetitia Legrix) and his mother (Dominique Reymond), who has suffered from a crippling depression ever since her newborn baby died of cancer. One day while sunning himself on the beach with Sarah, Mathieu notices the attentions of Cedric (Stephane Rideau), a sturdy, handsome, slightly older youth. The two quickly develop an illicit romance, spending their days combing the beach and their evenings slipping off for passionate sex. Cedric, it turns out, has dropped out of school and, after a brief stint as a rent boy and a failed relationship with a boy named Pierre (Nils Ohlund), moved over one town and settled into a comfortable routine of blue-collar work. The sturdy, good-natured Cedric charms Mathieu's family, but the true nature of the youths' relationship soon becomes apparent, leading to conflict, especially with oldest sibling Annick. Mathieu's biggest problem, however, is his sense of powerlessness over his mother's illness and the death in the family. The scenes of his romance with Cedric are interspersed with scenes from two later time periods. In one setting, we witness Mathieu's recovery from a suicide attempt and subsequent refusal to accept Cedric's visits; in another, we see Mathieu return, alone, to the site of his sexual coming of age. Presque Rien received its American release under the title Come Undone; after premiering at the 2001 L.A. Outfest, a gay and lesbian film series, it received a limited art-house release. Rejane Kerdaffrec, who previously appeared in the Lifschitz/Bouquet film Les Corps Ouverts, appears in a small role as Mathieu's psychiatrist. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi