TF1 is broadcasting “Touchées” tonight, a poignant TV movie about violence against women directed by actress Alexandra Lamy who is trying the exercise for the first time. A success !
What is it about ?
Lucie has just moved to Anduze with her son Léo, to get away from her violent ex-husband. In the hope of rebuilding herself, she enrolls in a therapy based on fencing offered by a local association. There, she meets other women victims of sexual violence and strikes up a sincere friendship with Tamara and Nicole.
Little by little, the participants regain their self-confidence thanks to the sword exercises and the therapist, Eva, who accompanies them. When Lucie’s ex-husband resurfaces, she is no longer alone to face her fears and her past…
Adaptation of Quentin Zuitton’s graphic novel published by Payot editions.
Thursday, September 22 at 9:10 p.m. on TF1, and already available on Salto.
Who is it with?
For her first production, Alexandra Lamy surrounded herself with a cast of choice. The character of Lucie is thus portrayed by Mélanie Doutey, seen recently in Les 7 vies de Léa. The comedian Claudia Tagbo lends her features to Nicole while Chloé Jouannet, the daughter of Alexandra Lamy discovered in particular in the series of TF1 Infidèle, plays Tamara.
The actress, screenwriter and director Andréa Bescond, who had received the César for best adaptation for Les Chatouilles, embodies the therapist of the association who will gradually help women to rebuild themselves. On the writing side, Solen Roy-Pagenault (Candice Renoir) took care of the scenarios with the help of Quentin Zuitton, author of the comic strip from which Touchées is taken.
Well worth a look ?
After She saved me, broadcast last March on M6, it’s TF1’s turn to offer a hard-hitting fiction on violence against women. And for the occasion, the channel has called on Alexandra Lamy, who is going behind the camera for the first time to talk about a subject that is close to her heart.
This adaptation of the eponymous graphic novel by Quentin Zuitton follows the fate of Alice, a young mother who has changed her life with her son to flee her abusive husband. In her new city, she will join a therapy group based on fencing in order to begin to rebuild herself and regain power over her life.
There she will meet Tamara and Nicole, who have also suffered violence, and together they will help each other to perhaps one day finally find peace. But when Lucie’s ex-husband manages to track her down, she will have to find the strength to face her past.
Crowned with the prize for best unit at the La Rochelle fiction festival, Touchées is a poignant fiction that manages to move away from the usual pitfalls to offer us a sober story.
François LEFEBVRE / TF1 Claudia Tagbo, Melanie Doutey and Chloe Jouannet
Apart from one or two exceptions, the violence is shown very little in order to focus on the trauma suffered by his women, and the long road to reconstruction that awaits them. And it is thanks to fencing that they will succeed in evacuating the brutality and abuse of which they have been victims, and which they are trying by all means to get rid of.
The story of Touchées is mainly based on the trio of actresses who work wonderfully. If Mélanie Doutey is perfect in the role of Lucie, she is upstaged by her two co-stars, Claudia Tagbo and Chloé Jouannet.
The first, which we are more accustomed to seeing in the humorous register, shines in this counter-intuitive role. His modest interpretation of Nicole, a deeply hurt woman whose secrets we are gradually discovering, is perfect.
As for Chloé Jouannet, she surprises us in the skin of Tamara, a constantly angry young woman who hides a heavy secret. By mixing strength and fragility, the young actress manages to give life to this multifaceted character, who will gradually lower her guard in contact with Lucie and Nicole.
For her first director, Alexandra Lamy succeeds brilliantly by offering us a strong and subtle TV movie based on a trio of talented actresses. Despite the difficult subject, Touchées remains a luminous and hopeful fiction, which is worth the detour.