Cinema, as an art form, relies on two tools — sight and sound — to fool us into believing that all five of our senses are being stimulated. That makes Léa Mysius’ more-intriguing-than-successful supernatural thriller, “The Five Devils,” a very curious animal indeed, since it focuses on a young girl with an exceptionally strong sense of smell, a phenomenon its director can show but never properly reproduce.
Eight-year-old Vicky (Sally Dramé) would be right at home as one of the young mutants in an “X-Men” movie, so hypersensitive are her olfactory skills. A future perfume designer perhaps, the frizzy-haired kid spends her free time collecting odoriferous scraps from her life and environment and storing them in neatly labeled jars. When her mother, Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos), discovers Vicky’s gift during a walk in the woods, she blindfolds her daughter and tries to hide under a pile of wet leaves. Sniffing the air,...
Eight-year-old Vicky (Sally Dramé) would be right at home as one of the young mutants in an “X-Men” movie, so hypersensitive are her olfactory skills. A future perfume designer perhaps, the frizzy-haired kid spends her free time collecting odoriferous scraps from her life and environment and storing them in neatly labeled jars. When her mother, Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos), discovers Vicky’s gift during a walk in the woods, she blindfolds her daughter and tries to hide under a pile of wet leaves. Sniffing the air,...
- 4/1/2023
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
The much-maligned Richard III finally gets the royal treatment in Stephen Frears’ The Lost King as amateur historian Philippa Langley unearths the monarch’s five-century-old remains in a parking lot in Leicester, England, in 2012. Two books and a documentary later, IFC Films presents the feature film version in 750+ theaters.
“It took eight years from starting the search to cutting the tarmac. To see it telescoped into a hundred or so minutes made it really powerful for me,” Langley, who’s played in the film by Sally Hawkins, told Deadline.
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Richard III (1461-1483) is one of Shakespeare’s most malevolent villains,...
“It took eight years from starting the search to cutting the tarmac. To see it telescoped into a hundred or so minutes made it really powerful for me,” Langley, who’s played in the film by Sally Hawkins, told Deadline.
Related Story Jane Fonda-Lily Tomlin Pic ‘Moving On’ Sees $800K Opening – Specialty Box Office Related Story Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin Reunite In 'Moving On' – Specialty Preview Related Story 'The Magic Flute', With A 'Harry Potter' Feel And YA Cred, Hopes To Hit A High Note – Specialty Preview
Richard III (1461-1483) is one of Shakespeare’s most malevolent villains,...
- 3/24/2023
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
A child’s Perfume-style ability enables her to witness emotional crises in her parents’ past, in this disquieting movie
There are some intriguing ingredients in the mix for this weird, contrived supernatural psychodrama from French director Léa Mysius; some strong performances too, and a genuinely stunning final image. For good or ill, I can imagine M Night Shyamalan wanting to remake it for Hollywood. But somehow it doesn’t all come together, delivering neither the stab of actual fear nor the satisfaction of real, plausible psychological insight.
The setting is Isère near the French Alps. The always excellent Adèle Exarchopoulos carries the movie in the role of Joanne; she works at the local sports centre and is unhappily married to Jimmy (Moustapha Mbengue), a guy from Senegal. The tensions in their marriage are made much worse when Jimmy reveals that his sister Julia (Swala Emati) is coming to stay; a...
There are some intriguing ingredients in the mix for this weird, contrived supernatural psychodrama from French director Léa Mysius; some strong performances too, and a genuinely stunning final image. For good or ill, I can imagine M Night Shyamalan wanting to remake it for Hollywood. But somehow it doesn’t all come together, delivering neither the stab of actual fear nor the satisfaction of real, plausible psychological insight.
The setting is Isère near the French Alps. The always excellent Adèle Exarchopoulos carries the movie in the role of Joanne; she works at the local sports centre and is unhappily married to Jimmy (Moustapha Mbengue), a guy from Senegal. The tensions in their marriage are made much worse when Jimmy reveals that his sister Julia (Swala Emati) is coming to stay; a...
- 3/21/2023
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
"A witchy thriller..." If you're into eerie, mysterious French films - watch out for this one. Mubi has released an official US trialer for The Five Devils, a French film from director Léa Mysius (also of Ava previously). It's now set to open in theaters starting in March. This premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival last year in the Directors' Fortnight sidebar. Vicky lives with her mother Joanne and father Jimmie, a man struggling to find his place. When Vicky's aunt Julia arrives after being released from prison, her presence brings back the past in a violent, magical way. She has some special powers that allow her to connect to the past through smells. The film is lead by a magical performance from the young actress Sally Dramé as Vicky - who is the real break out this time. Glad she appears in this trailer. It also stars Adèle Exarchopoulos as her mom,...
- 2/27/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
“The Five Devils” conjures the magic of childhood, forbidden first love, and the intangible mystery of death.
Directed by Léa Mysius (“Ava”), who co-wrote the film along with cinematographer Paul Guilhaume, “The Five Devils” cast a spell after premiering at 2022 Cannes as part of Directors’ Fortnight. The feature went on to win Best Picture – Next Wave at Fantastic Fest and is distributed by Mubi.
Newcomer Sally Dramé leads the feature as Vicky, a strange and solitary little girl, who has a magical gift: she can reproduce any scent she likes, and collects them in a series of carefully labeled jars. She has secretly captured the scent of her mother Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos), for whom she nurtures a wild, excessive love. When her aunt Julia (Swala Emati) bursts into their life, Vicky reproduces her smell and is transported into dark and archaic memories which lead her to uncover the secrets of her village,...
Directed by Léa Mysius (“Ava”), who co-wrote the film along with cinematographer Paul Guilhaume, “The Five Devils” cast a spell after premiering at 2022 Cannes as part of Directors’ Fortnight. The feature went on to win Best Picture – Next Wave at Fantastic Fest and is distributed by Mubi.
Newcomer Sally Dramé leads the feature as Vicky, a strange and solitary little girl, who has a magical gift: she can reproduce any scent she likes, and collects them in a series of carefully labeled jars. She has secretly captured the scent of her mother Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos), for whom she nurtures a wild, excessive love. When her aunt Julia (Swala Emati) bursts into their life, Vicky reproduces her smell and is transported into dark and archaic memories which lead her to uncover the secrets of her village,...
- 2/27/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
The Five Devils Trailer — Léa Mysius‘ The Five Devils / Les cinq diables (2022) movie trailer has been released by Le Pacte. The Five Devils trailer stars Sally Dramé, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Swala Emati, Moustapha Mbengue, Patrick Bouchitey, Daphne Patakia, and Hugo Dillon. Crew Paul Guilhaume and Léa Mysius wrote the screenplay for The Five Devils. [...]
Continue reading: The Five Devils (2022) Movie Trailer: Adèle Exarchopoulos’ Daughter Can Capture Anyone’s Scent in Léa Mysius’ Film...
Continue reading: The Five Devils (2022) Movie Trailer: Adèle Exarchopoulos’ Daughter Can Capture Anyone’s Scent in Léa Mysius’ Film...
- 1/31/2023
- by Rollo Tomasi
- Film-Book
"A queer, witchy thriller." Mubi has revealed the first US teaser trailer for The Five Devils, a French film from director Léa Mysius who originally broke out a few years before with her little film titled Ava. This already premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival in the Directors' Fortnight, and is set to open in the US this March. Vicky lives with her mother Joanne and father Jimmie, a man struggling to find his place. When Vicky's aunt Julia arrives after being released from prison, her presence brings back the past in a violent, magical way. She has some special powers that allow her to connect to the past through smells. It's a unique film, with a magical performance by the young actress Sally Dramé as Vicky - who is the real heart & soul of it. This also stars Adèle Exarchopoulos as her mom, Swala Emati, Moustapha Mbengue, Patrick Bouchitey,...
- 1/30/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Click here to read the full article.
Thirty-three-year-old French director Léa Mysius launched onto the international scene with her 2017 debut, Ava, the story of a teenager slowly losing her sight, which won the Sacd Award at the Cannes festival’s Critics’ Week and was a hit at the French box office.
Her ambitious follow-up, The Five Devils, moves closer to genre territory with the story of Vicky (Sally Dramé), a young girl with a magical sense of smell who is able to transport herself into the buried memories of her mother (Adèle Exarchopoulos) and her love affair with Vicky’s father’s sister Julia (Swala Emati). Besides directing, Mysius is a busy screenwriter, working with Claire Denis on her Cannes Grand Jury prize winner Stars at Noon, and contributing to Jacques Audiard’s Paris, 13th District, Arnaud Desplechin’s Oh Mercy! and André Téchiné’s Farewell to the Night. The Five Devils,...
Thirty-three-year-old French director Léa Mysius launched onto the international scene with her 2017 debut, Ava, the story of a teenager slowly losing her sight, which won the Sacd Award at the Cannes festival’s Critics’ Week and was a hit at the French box office.
Her ambitious follow-up, The Five Devils, moves closer to genre territory with the story of Vicky (Sally Dramé), a young girl with a magical sense of smell who is able to transport herself into the buried memories of her mother (Adèle Exarchopoulos) and her love affair with Vicky’s father’s sister Julia (Swala Emati). Besides directing, Mysius is a busy screenwriter, working with Claire Denis on her Cannes Grand Jury prize winner Stars at Noon, and contributing to Jacques Audiard’s Paris, 13th District, Arnaud Desplechin’s Oh Mercy! and André Téchiné’s Farewell to the Night. The Five Devils,...
- 11/2/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Every Cannes Film Festival, there is a quest to find the most iconic needle-drop moment from films playing across every strand. The 2022 gold medal is Léa Mysius’s to lose for her deployment of Bonnie Tyler’s 80s power ballad “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” The song is cued up at a karaoke night in a sleepy French village, selected by Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos) for her and Julia (Swala Emati) to perform. Julia has the distinction of being both Joanne’s long-lost, high-school love, and the sister of the man she ended up marrying. When Julia suddenly returns, after years of self-exile, theirs is not the easiest path back to each other. In their corner, helping out, is the snarling, roaring force of this raw anthem. Emat, a professional singer, and Exarchopoulos, an actress who puts her body into everything she does, grow in confidence as the song builds to its ragged crescendo.
- 5/25/2022
- by Sophie Monks Kaufman
- Indiewire
Director Léa Mysius expertly crafts a queer, witchy movie in her Directors’ Fortnight debut film The Five Devils (Les Cinq Diables), which received a five-minute standing ovation at the screening I attended. Mysius takes concepts like identity, sexuality and mysticism and creates an intricate genre film that’s part time travel, part drama, and all heart.
Vickey (Sally Dramé) is a mixed-race child growing up in a small town in France, and she has a special gift: she can reproduce any scent from anything and anyone anywhere. She keeps the scents bottled for reference. Her sense of smell is so sharp she can tell which animal licked a pine cone and could find her mother Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos) by smell even when she’s 20 feet away from her and covered in pine.
Joanne is a swim instructor and lifeguard who is in a loveless marriage with Jimmy (Moustapha Mbengue). When...
Vickey (Sally Dramé) is a mixed-race child growing up in a small town in France, and she has a special gift: she can reproduce any scent from anything and anyone anywhere. She keeps the scents bottled for reference. Her sense of smell is so sharp she can tell which animal licked a pine cone and could find her mother Joanne (Adèle Exarchopoulos) by smell even when she’s 20 feet away from her and covered in pine.
Joanne is a swim instructor and lifeguard who is in a loveless marriage with Jimmy (Moustapha Mbengue). When...
- 5/24/2022
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Les cinq diables
France’s Léa Mysius continues her ascension with her sophomore directorial project Les cinq diables. Starring Adele Exarchopoulos, Moustapha Mbengue and reteaming with actress Noée Abita from her 2017 debut Ava, the project is produced through her Trois Brigands Productions and F for Film. Mysius also reunites with her writer and Dp Paul Guilhaume on the project. Mysius’ feature debut Ava played in Cannes Critics’ Week in 2017, winning the Sacd Prize. She’s also written the screenplays for Arnaud Desplechin’s Ismael’s Ghosts (2017) and Oh, Mercy! (2019) as well as Andre Techine’s Farewell to the Night (2019).…...
France’s Léa Mysius continues her ascension with her sophomore directorial project Les cinq diables. Starring Adele Exarchopoulos, Moustapha Mbengue and reteaming with actress Noée Abita from her 2017 debut Ava, the project is produced through her Trois Brigands Productions and F for Film. Mysius also reunites with her writer and Dp Paul Guilhaume on the project. Mysius’ feature debut Ava played in Cannes Critics’ Week in 2017, winning the Sacd Prize. She’s also written the screenplays for Arnaud Desplechin’s Ismael’s Ghosts (2017) and Oh, Mercy! (2019) as well as Andre Techine’s Farewell to the Night (2019).…...
- 1/5/2021
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Produced by Trois Brigands and F comme Film and sold by Wild Bunch, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Noée Abita and Moustapha Mbengue lead the cast of this second feature film by the director of Ava. On 16 March, in Bourg-d'Oisans, the first clapperboard will slam on Les Cinq Diables, the second feature film by Léa Mysius following on from Ava. Leading the cast are Adèle Exarchopoulos (whom we’ll be seeing in French cinemas as of 20 May in Mandibules and on 16 December in Bac Nord, and who’ll take part in the second round of filming on Carpe Diem once...
In this sombre and thoughtful drama, a Senegalese construction worker falls for the French woman whose house he is remodelling
Last week, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun’s A Season in France was released here, a film about the migrant African experience in France, for workers and asylum seekers – an experience of marginalisation and alienation. Now there is Philippe Faucon’s sombre, thoughtful if emotionally subdued and unemphatic film on very much the same theme.
Amin (Moustapha Mbengue) is a Senegalese construction worker in France, sending money to his wife Aïcha (Mareme N’Diaye) who is back in the old country looking after their three children and Amin’s mother, dealing with Amin’s arrogant, overbearing brother, and yearning to be brought over to France so the whole family can be together. But Amin is having an affair with the divorcee whose house he is remodelling. This is Gabrielle, who is played by...
Last week, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun’s A Season in France was released here, a film about the migrant African experience in France, for workers and asylum seekers – an experience of marginalisation and alienation. Now there is Philippe Faucon’s sombre, thoughtful if emotionally subdued and unemphatic film on very much the same theme.
Amin (Moustapha Mbengue) is a Senegalese construction worker in France, sending money to his wife Aïcha (Mareme N’Diaye) who is back in the old country looking after their three children and Amin’s mother, dealing with Amin’s arrogant, overbearing brother, and yearning to be brought over to France so the whole family can be together. But Amin is having an affair with the divorcee whose house he is remodelling. This is Gabrielle, who is played by...
- 6/19/2019
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
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