OUR WONDERFUL LIVES (NOS VIES FORMIDABLES)

Saturday September 28 – 5:00 pm – Truffaut Theatre
(+ Short Film Presentation: I’M GOING OUT FOR CIGARETTES)
(Screening ends at 7:15 pm)

U.S Premiere | France | 2018 | Drama | 117 min | In French with English subtitles

Directed by: Fabienne Godet
Written by: Fabienne Godet, Julie Moulier
Cinematography: Marie Célette
Film Editing: Florent Mangeot
Original Score: Fabien Bourdier
Produced by: Bertrand Faivre (Le Bureau)
Cast: Julie Moulier (Margot), Zoé Héran (Salomé), Bruno Lochet (Pierre), Françoise Pinkwasser (Annette), Régis Ribes (Antoine, the Therapist), Camille Rutherford (Lisa)
International Sales: The Bureau Sales

Julie Moulier gives a stark, riveting performance as Margot in this quietly powerful study of fifteen disparate souls, at various stages of recovery, in a rehab facility in the French countryside. Inspired by the Hazelden Foundation treatment method and basing each character on real-life testimonies, director Fabienne Godet chose to make this film without an “actual” screenplay, but rather with a very precise plot summary and a courageous amount of improvisation. Moulier, who created her own character’s narrative arc, is even credited as co-screenwriter of the film. The result is a trip down the harrowing path to healing that each of these protagonists must cross — especially the taciturn Margot, who, like an onion, slowly peels away layers of pain, shame and the unspeakable in her effort to confront her inner demons and finally get clean. But most of all, the film illustrates the forging of deep bonds, extraordinary compassion, unconditional love and solidarity, and incandescent hope.

A native of Angers, Fabienne Godet, at first, saw her foray into the cinema as a hobby. With a degree in psychology, she began her career in the medical world of mental health. Yet she never lost sight of her passion, studied filmmaking in her spare time, and began making short films in 1994. In 2005, she co-wrote and directed her first feature, Burnt Out, starring Olivier Gourmet, which garnered much critical acclaim. That was followed by two documentaries, My Greatest Escape and an episode for the series Empreintes. In 2013, she directed A Place on Earth, starring Benoît Poelvoorde.

Presented in association with:

Le Bureau

WIF (Women In Films)