La Gradiva

Marine Atlan’s emotionally gripping and beautifully shot love story about a fateful school trip that will change the lives of everyone involved forever. One of the most impressive debuts of recent years.

A French high school class travels to Pompeii with their devoted Latin teacher, Madame Mercier. On the train ride over, Toni and Suzanne watch as their friends James and Angela have sex in one of the compartments. These very first images already render palpable the characters’ barely containable desires as well as their (deep-seated) fears. We are offered intimate insight into the souls of these teenagers. Always at the center of attention is Toni: unhappily in love with James, locked in a constant conflict with the teacher, and, through what he believes to be his aristocratic family history, deeply connected to the region around Naples. The golden light of southern Italy may be beautiful, but dark secrets lurk beneath the surface.

This extraordinary film ranks among the finest debuts of recent years. It reminded us of Charlotte Wells’s ›Aftersun‹, which marked Paul Mescal’s major breakthrough. ›La Gradiva‹ could do the same for the fantastic Colas Quignard (one of the contenders for our Young Actors Award). Will Marine Atlan’s drama endure like the frescoes in Pompeii that feature in the film? It just might.