An arty, well-received debut on relationships
Print Edition
FRENCH director Jeanne Herry has created many a “first” with her debut movie, “She Adores Him,” at the Shanghai International Film Festival.
It is the first time she has scripted and directed a film or had a movie screened in a cinema. It also marks the first time she has participated in an international film festival and the first time she has ever visited Shanghai.
At the premiere of her movie at the Shanghai Film Art Center on Sunday, Jeanne said: “I was surprised when they told me the movie was nominated for the Golden Goblet best picture competition. Thank you for inviting me, and I really appreciate that.”
“She Adores Him” tells the story of middle-aged single-mother Muriel, who works as a beautician at a community hair saloon. Her life is filled with Vincent Lacroix, a famous French singer at the top of his career, and she adores everything about him. One night when Muriel opens the door and sees her idol standing right in front of her, she is overwhelmed. He asks her for help to get rid of a bulky package: the body of a woman hidden in the trunk of his car. Without hesitation, Muriel accepts. Then the trouble begins.
At the weekend’s screening, when the 106-minute comedy thriller ended, the audience warmly applauded. Many said it was good debut for the director. One viewer said she thought the shooting was quite smooth, showing the director’s skills in clarity of relationships, conflicts and dramatic actions.
Born into an artistic family in Paris in 1978, Herry studied theater at the drama school of the Paris Conservatory and published her first novel, “Eighty Summers,” in 2005. Influenced by her actress mother, Miou-Miou, and singer father ,Julien Clerc, Herry always wanted to pursue a career in the movie industry.
“It took me six years to make this film. Of course, I spent a lot of time on my script and then came the problem of finance,” Herry said in an interview with Shanghai Daily. “Thanks to my wonderful crew, it was finally done and the performance was great. For me, it was a great experience and I think I have found my job. I love directing.”
Sophie Tepper, a co-producer of “She Adores Him,” said: “When I first read her script, it was complete and perfect. The story is fantastic and I think it’s perhaps the first movie to explore the relationships between the stars and their fans.”
Since this is Herry’s first visit to China, the 36-year-old director admitted she didn’t know much about Chinese audiences and China’s movie market in recent years.
“She Adores Him” is a typical French blend of film noir and detective fiction based on the lives of the French people, Herry said, “But there is no boundary for the media of art today, so I wish the Chinese audience can also understand and enjoy it.”
Q: How did the story come into being?
A: My father is a French singer, who is quite famous. When I was a little girl, I saw lots of fans coming around my house. I have seen the life of a singer and the fans, as well. And there is this funny game in France these days that we will talk about and laugh in our spare time: Who would you help if someone knocked at your door at night with the cops? It’s not usual and probably won’t happen in our real life, but it’s interesting to think about it.
I think the fan would do everything for the star. When the table turns, their roles reverse. That’s how I was inspired to write a story about it.
Q: What’s the theme of the movie “She Adores Him?”
A: I want to talk about the uniqueness of common and ordinary people and the ordinariness of famous and celebrated people. I believe in the goodness of people. In the end, your private life, your friends and your relationship is far more important than your work or profession.
Q: What’s the most important thing you did as a director?
A: I spent a lot of time doing research on all the settings in the movie. It is not easy to create the career of a singer who is well known in France for 20 years. He released his first album about 20 years ago. As he came along, there were the posters of him, pictures of his friends and families, and the albums at different periods. I want everything to be very precise and very real because it is the big dig throughout the movie due to the death of the girl.
Q: Who has influenced your style most?
A: I would say Woody Allen’s “Crimes and Misdemeanors,” Claude Miller’s “Under Suspicion” and “Harry” by Dominik Moll. I am drawn to movies that are full of tension which consist of a number of characters and stories intersecting in some meaningful ways. At the end of “She Adores Him,” however, it’s Muriel’s complete inverse. It’s irony.
Q: What’s your next plan with “She Adores Him?”
A: With all the “firsts” being put together, I hope this is a good beginning. My next plan is to take it to another festival, the Angouleme Film Festival, in August in France. And then there will be the public screening in Paris at the end of this year.
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