If you like to get away from it all, head to theaters on Wednesday, April 20. Ogre, a dreamlike feature film written and directed by Arnaud Malherbe, is being released in cinemas.
Chloé is a fragile young woman with a very painful past. After years of living in fear, she decides to put down her suitcases in a small isolated village in the Morvan, which needs a teacher. For her and her 8-year-old son Jules, it’s a new beginning. Chloé and Jules are welcomed with an astonishing mixture of mistrust and benevolence by the inhabitants. And for good reason, a worrying threat hangs over the village. A young boy has disappeared and dead animals are found in the forest…While Chloé tries to fit in, Jules isolates himself. The young boy is convinced that a monster is on the prowl.
In the cast of the feature film, we find Ana Girardot, Samuel Jouy, and the young revelation of the film, Giovanni Pucci.
An intriguing fantasy atmosphere
Notice to those who love fantastic stories with dark and mysterious atmospheres. In Ogre, everything is done to generate suspense. First of all the decor, both gigantic and cramped, of this small village planted in the middle of an endless forest. You think you know where the ogre is hiding, you scan the immensity of the forest, and the shadowy corners of Jules’ room? You are probably wrong, it is everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Then the story, which progresses in small steps and takes us a little further into the mystery and the marvelous every minute. Finally, the sound environment, which plays on the principle of permanent opposition: the sounds of nature contrast with those of man, the sounds of the monster collide with the silence that soothes Jules when he turns off his device. auditory. A true audiovisual experience, Ogre is savored in the cinema, in the cocoon of a dark room where everything invites the imagination.
Ogre: a committed film
On paper, Ogre is a tale, a fantastic fable. But between the lines, it is actually a committed feature film. Many social issues are covered. The first is domestic violence and the difficulty of rebuilding oneself. Ogre also addresses other advanced issues such as disability, school bullying. Whether you jump or shiver, Ogre is nonetheless thought-provoking.
Ana Girardot, luminous
Ana Girardot is a real ray of sunshine in the film Ogre. The actress embodies with great finesse the character of Chloé and all its nuances. Single, deeply hurt by an abusive relationship, she is also a woman with desires. Stranger and target of all questions, she only wants to blend in with the crowd and be “normal”. A protective and invested mother, she nevertheless wants her son to become independent and emancipated. Ana Girardot is the very embodiment of this fragility and ambivalence on screen. L’alchemy that exists between the actress and Giovanni Pucci, the young actor who embodies Jules, is almost palpable. Their mother-son pair illuminates the screen as soon as it appears and illuminates the stifling atmosphere of this countryside where mystery hovers.
Ogre, by Arnaud Malherbe, in theaters on Wednesday April 20, 2022.