A KID / Le Fils de Jean

Los Angeles Premiere • Drama • France, 2016

DCP • 2.35 • Dolby 5.1 • Color • 98 min

Directed by: Philippe Lioret

Written by: Philippe Lioret, Natalie Carter

Based on the books by: Jean-Paul Dubois

Cinematography: Philippe Guilbert

Film Editing: Andréa Sedlackova

Original Score: Flemming Nordkrog

Produced by: Philippe Lioret (Fin Août Production), France 3 Cinema

Cast: Pierre Deladonchamps (Mathieu), Gabriel Arcand (Pierre), Catherine de Léan (Bettina), Marie-Thérèse Fortin (Angie)

International Sales: Le Pacte 

U.S. distributor: Distrib Films U.S

 

In this layered family drama, Stranger by the Lake revelation Pierre Deladonchamps delivers another sharply nuanced performance as Mathieu, a young Parisian divorcé who receives a call out of the blue. The caller tells Mathieu that his father, Jean, whom he has never known, has died and has left a package for him. Hoping to discover his roots, Mathieu decides to attend the funeral in Quebec. Upon arrival Mathieu is surprised to learn that his father died in a boating accident and that the body has still not been recovered. Jean’s best friend, a certain Dr. Pierre, convinces him to hide his true identity from Jean’s two adult sons from another mother.  Mathieu’s precarious situation becomes even less manageable when, after the police call off the search, he joins his half-brothers as they continue to look for the body on their own. What they dredge up is mostly buried resentment and conflicting emotion.  A Kid is a poignant examination of identity and paternity from one of contemporary French cinema’s most discerning eyes.

 

Ten years before Stephen Spielberg’s The Terminal, writer/director Philippe Lioret exposed the hidden airport subculture of permanently stranded travelers with no legal standing in his feature debut Lost In Transit (1993), starring Jean Rochefort. Lioret, followed up with films starring favorite collaborators Jacques Gamblin and Sandrine Bonnaire, honing the lighter style he had already established. Lioret began his transition to realist drama with The Light (COLCOA 2005). His breakthrough film Welcome (COLCOA 2009 Audience Award winner), invited audiences to sympathize with the plight of illegal immigrants who risk everything for a better life in France. Despite the controversial subject, the film was nominated for ten César Awards, including best film, best director, and best screenplay. Today, Lioret is best known for his closely observed characters and thematically complex, impressionistic storytelling.