PROMISE AT DAWN (La Promesse de l’aube)
North American Premiere | France / Belgium | 2017 | Drama, Biography, | 130 min | In French with English subtitles
Directed by: Éric Barbier
Written by: Éric Barbier, Marie Eynard, Based On Romain Gary’s Work
Cinematography: Glynn Speeckaert, Dong Jingsong
Film Editing: Jennifer Augé
Original Score: Renaud Barbier
Produced by: Éric Jehelmann, Philippe Rousselet (Jerico), Pathé Production, TF1 Films Productions
Cast: Charlotte Gainsbourg (Nina Kacew), Pierre Niney (Romain Gary), Didier Bourdon (Alex Gubernatis), Jean-Pierre Darroussin (Zaremba), Catherine McCormack (Leslie Blanch), Finnegan Oldfield (Captain Langer), Pawel Puchalski (Young Romain), Nemo Schiffman (Romain as a teenager)
International Sales: Pathé Films
Charlotte Gainsbourg turns in an exuberant performance as Nina, Romain Gary’s overbearing single mom, and César-winner Pierre Niney (A Perfect Man, COLCOA 2015) plays the illustrious author in this filial love story adapted from Gary’s autobiographical novel of the same name. Hounding the boy at every turn — from his childhood in Poland, to his adolescence in the South of France, to his WWII adventures as a bombardier — Nina continually brags to everyone she meets that her son will become a great writer, a war hero, a French ambassador, and a Knight of the Legion of Honor. She thrusts her monumental aspirations onto her young son… and the beleaguered boy is determined to realize them for her.
Éric Barbier | Writer/director Éric Barbier is a graduate of the IDHEC film school in Paris. His feature directorial debut, Le Brasier (1991), was honored with the Prix Jean Vigo for best first feature that year. His subsequent films include Toreros (2000), The Serpent (COLCOA 2007) and The Last Diamond (COLCOA 2014). He and co-writer Marie Eynard received a César nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for Promise at Dawn.
In Association with: Pathé Films
Labels: Opening Film