Un triomphe

"A few years ago, Marc Bordure, my producer, introduced me to a documentary film about a director, Jan Jönson, who had edited En attendant Godot (Waiting for Godot) with inmates in a prison in Sweden. The show was such a success that they went on tour, until the rather breathtaking ending at the Royal Theater in Gothenburg. He had told me: "this story is for you"... I began to think about a French and contemporary transposition of the story. Beckett's play seemed a bit dry from the outset, so shouldn't the action be moved to another field? Music? Singing? Dance? Or why not stage women prisoners...? In any case it was necessary to reinvent everything because the Swedish prison environment of the 80s was far removed from today's French prisons. And I realized that in order to write on this subject, I had to anticipate the casting and the direction, imagine a way of working to shoot the rehearsals while leaving a certain amount of improvisation... ". - Emmanuel Courcol

It is often the true stories that give real inspiration to writers and directors to transcend the facts and bring to life films of rare emotion. Yet it would be simplistic to see in the new film co-written and directed by Emmanuel Courcol (Cessez-le-feu (2016)) a simple feel-good-movie perfect for the holiday season because behind this story whose main character is an actor who wants to stage Samuel Beckett's play En attendant Godot with prison inmates. Of the true story, Marc Bordure, Robert Guédiguian have kept the essence and the finality of which one will not say anything as it turns out to be one of the most beautiful scenes of cinema seen recently.

The two screenwriters have also understood all the benefits of theater, which is one of the most beautiful therapies available to accept, question and give the best of oneself. From the very first minutes when Etienne (Kad Merad) enters a prison to replace a friend actor and director of a theater, he will be confronted with prisoners with a strong character. He will not only manage to hold their attention but also to give the best of themselves while fighting against their own weaknesses and wild character.

Not only does director Emmanuel Courcol find the perfect angle to make the rehearsals in a prison in Samuel Beckett's play exciting, but he is also constantly trying to remain credible and bring to light the many psychological cracks in the characters. In the role of Etienne, the actor who has difficulty getting back on stage and managing his personal frustrations, Kad Merad proves once again to be one of the best actors today, far more impressive in dramatic roles than in those that made his fame in French cinema. No other actor than him could bring his fragility, this devouring thirst to be an actor and his willingness to share the pleasure of acting. In this film he succeeds in making us laugh, in surprising us but also in moving us during a final scene which will remain for a long time marked in our memories as film enthusiasts. The supporting roles are also carried by actors who are totally committed whether David Ayala (Patrick), Lamine Cissokho, Sofian Khammes, Pierre Lottin, Wabinlé Nabié, Alexandre Medvedev, Saïd Benchnafa, Marina Hands and Laurent Stocker.

The great care given to the numerous dialogues and the opposition between the prison world and the outside world proved to be fascinating. Far from these popular actors, A Triumph is a film of rare emotional strength in which everyone will find themselves. The strong emotional bond between the spectators and its fundamentally human characters shows us that appearances are often deceptive and that everyone must be given their chance.

By putting the theater at the center of the film and by showing how inmates with no experience on stage become little by little great actors, this film proves to be an excellent feel-good movie that really makes us want to applaud so much this film has been filled with a true love for the theater and above all shows that we all have the right to a second chance and that we must never give up. We must always give the best of ourselves and especially share our qualities with others. The personage of Etienne to whom life has given few gifts, divorced, financial difficulties, conflictual relationships with his daughter, finds a second family with his prisoners.

A triumph
Directed by Emmanuel Courcol
Produced by Marc Bordure, Robert Guédiguian
Written by Emmanuel Courcol, Thierry de Carbonnières
Starring Kad Merad, David Ayala, Lamine Cissokho, Sofian Khammes, Pierre Lottin, Wabinlé Nabié, Alexandre Medvedev, Saïd Benchnafa, Marina Hands, Laurent Stocker
Music by Fred Avril
Cinematography : Yann Maritaud
Edited by Guerric Catala
Production companies : Agat Films & Cie, Les Productions du Ch'Timi
Distributed by Memento Films Distribution (France)
Release date: January 20, 2021 (France)
Running time: 106 minutes

Seen on October 5, 2020 at Gaumont Disney Village, Room 3 seat A18

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