22/12/2010

Launched in theatres today by StudioCanal, Jean-Pierre Améris’s French/Belgian comedy Les Émotifs Anonymes [+see also:
trailer
making of
film profile] (“Anonymous Emotional People”, see news) has won over critics with its subtle style and quality acting performances. Indeed, the film is a fine showcase for thespian duo Isabelle Carré (The Refuge [+see also:
trailer
film profile]) and Benoît Poelvoorde (Coco Before Chanel [+see also:
trailer
film profile]), who also shone together in In His Hands [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (nominated for the 2006 César Awards for Best Actress and Best Actor).

Co-scripted by the director and Philippe Blasband, the film tells of the complicated love-at-first-sight encounter between two overly-emotional people, a chocolate factory manager and a talented chocolate-maker, light-heartedly exploring the two characters’ distress.

"What hyper-emotional people dread most are face-to-face encounters, intimacy. The idea of finding themselves exposed, both literally and figuratively, throws them into panic," explained Améris. "These people aren’t shy, it’s something else. They’re people who live in an almost constant state of tension, torn between a strong desire to love, work, exist and something that holds them back and blocks them every time. They’re often full of energy, and are neither depressed nor depressive.”

He continued: “It’s their defining state of tension which led me to comedy because it often puts them in unbelievable situations. Hyper-emotional people are so prepared to do anything to avoid what frightens them that they end up in inextricable and really farcical situations. And when they dare to make the move, they can achieve crazy things. They’re like internal combustion engines. It’s a wonderful catalyst for comedy."

Also hitting screens this Wednesday are Brit director Mike Leigh’s Another Year [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mike Leigh
film profile], which missed out on a prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival (Diaphana Distribution); Spanish helmer Guillem Morales’s gripping horror flick Julia’s Eyes [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (Universal Pictures France); and Serge Gisquière’s Belgian/French/Luxembourg co-production Libre Échange [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (“Free Exchange”), starring Carole Bouquet and Julie Depardieu as a call-girl and housewife who swap roles (ARP Sélection).

(Translated from French)