M6 is broadcasting “Respire” this Tuesday evening, a poignant fiction about school bullying by Charlie Loiselier and Calogero, who gets his first role on television here. Check out our review.
What is it about ?
Sing. This has always been 16-year-old Tessa’s reason for living. So when she entered high school, she put all the chances on her side by choosing the music option. But very quickly, the shy teenager becomes the target of mockery from certain students, jealous of her talent.
Abandoned by her best friend, Tessa suffers harassment which gradually becomes daily and pushes her to the limit. He will need all the support of those close to him and in particular of Raphaël, his music teacher, to rediscover his taste for life and realize his dream: to go on stage.
Tuesday September 12 from 9:10 p.m. on M6.
Who is it with?
Directed by Jérome Cornuau (Fugueuse) and written by Caroline Franc (Clem) and Elise Ayrault, Respire is carried by Charlie Loiselier, a young actress and singer who made her debut in SKAM France and the musical series ReuSSS.
The music teacher is played by Calogero, who here takes his first steps as an actor. Tessa’s mother is played by Charlie Bruneau, aka Roxane in En Famille. Léonie Simaga (I promise you), Rémi Pedevilla (Clem) and Valentin Duclaux (Ici Tout Commence) complete the cast.
It’s worth checking out ?
Adapted from the true story of Tessae, a young woman from Marseille bullied at school who found her salvation in music, Respire is an ambitious 90-minute fiction which deals with the heavy subject of school bullying.
Tessa is a teenager who is struggling to find a place in high school. Shy, she endures taunts and mockery from the other students without flinching. But the words she hears all day long begin to have an impact on her life.
Her only escape then becomes music, a field in which she excels. With the help of her family, but also of Raphaël, her music teacher, she will little by little find meaning in her life and realize her dream of going on stage.
Although the subject covered in Breathe is very important, and will probably resonate in the heads of many of the channel’s viewers, it is almost regrettable that the TV movie only lasts 90 minutes.
Many subjects, such as the school phobia which affects the teenager, are glossed over and relegated to the background, while the harassment which young Tessa undergoes is sometimes treated a little too quickly, which sometimes prevents us from being really touched by the events unfolding before our eyes.
A series in several episodes would surely have allowed the secondary characters and the problems that Tessa encounters to be better developed.
Jean Philippe BALTEL/STUDIOFACTSTORIES/M6
The real Tessa and Charlie Loiselier
As for the casting, the young Charlie Loiselier, who fans of France TV Slash will have seen in the musical series Reusss, offers us a precise interpretation of the young Tessa.
Charlie Bruneau is also perfect as a loving mother ready to do anything to protect her daughter. As for Calogero, he tries his hand at comedy here for the first time. If his debut is not perfect, his acting and his sensitivity remain convincing.
In short, Breathe is an essential fiction which deals with school bullying with great modesty. However, we regret that the format does not allow the different characters to be fully developed.
Note that the TV film is followed by the broadcast of a new documentary entitled “School: putting an end to harassment!”.