The Speech (French: Le Discours) is a 2020 Franco-Belgian comedy film written and directed by Laurent Tirard, based on the 2018 novel Le Discours by Fabrice Caro. It stars Benjamin Lavernhe and Sara Giraudeau.[2] The film was selected for the 2020 Cannes Film Festival. It screened at the Angoulême Francophone Film Festival on 1 September 2020. It was released in France on 9 June 2021.
| The Speech | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Laurent Tirard |
| Screenplay by | Laurent Tirard |
| Based on | Le Discours by Fabrice Caro |
| Produced by | Olivia Lagache |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Emmanuel Soyer |
| Edited by | Valérie Deseine |
| Music by | Mathieu Lamboley |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | Le Pacte |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 87 minutes |
| Countries |
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| Language | French |
| Box office | $3 million[1] |
Cast
edit- Benjamin Lavernhe as Adrien
- Sara Giraudeau as Sonia
- Kyan Khojandi as Ludo
- Julia Piaton as Sophie
- François Morel as Adrien's father
- Guilaine Londez as Adrien's mother
- Sébastien Chassagne as Sébastien
- Christophe Montenez as Solène's boyfriend
- Adeline D'Hermy as Solène
- Sarah Suco as Karine
- Laurent Bateau as The doctor
- Jean-Michel Lahmi as tech professor
- Marilou Aussilloux as Isabelle
- Sébastien Pouderoux as Romain
Production
editThe Speech was produced by Olivia Lagache for Les Films sur Mesure, and co-produced by Le Pacte, France 2 Cinéma, and the Belgian company Scope Pictures.[3]
Principal photography began on 21 October 2019,[4] and lasted six weeks, wrapping on 2 December in Paris.[3]
Release
editThe Speech was included in the Comedy Films section of the official selection of the 2020 Cannes Film Festival, which was cancelled due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.[5] It was screened for press and industry in an online edition of the Cannes Marché du Film in June 2020.[6][7] The film was subsequently selected to be screened at the 13th Angoulême Francophone Film Festival,[8] where it had its world premiere on 1 September 2023.[9]
The film was initially scheduled to be released in theaters in France on 23 December 2020, which was rescheduled to March 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] As cinemas in France remained subject to outright closures,[11] the film was further postponed to an indefinite date. The Speech was finally released in France on 9 June 2021 by Le Pacte.[12] The film was distributed in Belgium on 23 June by Cinéart.[13]
Critical reception
editThe Speech received an average rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars on the French website AlloCiné, based on 30 reviews.[14]
Cineuropa's Vittoria Scarpa gave the film a positive review, noting its "subtle sense of melancholy which lends depth to the story and resonates with the viewer".[15] La Nación's Milagros Amondaray gave the film a similarly positive review, concluding that "[w]hen it isn't cheesy or forced, The Speech is a welcome celebration of mistakes."[16] Clarín's Nazareno Brega gave the film a negative review, finding the main character unlikeable and annoying.[17]
References
edit- ^ "The Speech (2020)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ "Le Discours". Allocine.fr. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
- ^ a b Lemercier, Fabien (2 December 2019). "Filming has wrapped on The Speech by Laurent Tirard". Cineuropa. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Meslet, Emilio (25 September 2019). "Laurent Tirard adapte au cinéma le roman Le Discours de Fabcaro". Trois couleurs (in French). Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Sharf, Zack (3 June 2020). "Cannes Announces 2020 Official Lineup: 'French Dispatch,' 'Ammonite,' New McQueen and Ghibli". IndieWire. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (25 June 2020). "Charades Seals Major Territory Deals on Cannes Label Comedy 'The Speech' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (21 June 2020). "Cannes virtual market: buzz titles from France". Screen International. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ "Angoulême : toutes les avant-premières du FFA disponibles à la réservation". Sud Ouest (in French). 23 July 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ "FFA2020_Programme" (PDF) (in French). Festival du film francophone d'Angoulême. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ "Pour Benjamin Lavernhe, "si la culture ne se défend pas, personne ne le fera pour elle"". France 24 (in French). Paris. AFP. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (20 May 2021). "French Cinemas Reopen With Full Screenings, Score Best European Restart". Variety. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Balle, Catherine; Baronian, Renaud; Jaeglé, Yves; Valentin, Michel (9 June 2021). "Sorties cinéma du 9 juin : Nomadland, Le Discours, Conjuring 3, les films à voir". Le Parisien (in French). Archived from the original on 26 November 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ "Le Discours" (in French). Cinéart. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ "Critiques Presse pour le film Le Discours". AlloCiné (in French). Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Scarpa, Vittoria (22 October 2020). "Review: The Speech". Cineuropa. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Amondaray, Milagros (1 September 2022). "Estrenos de cine: El brindis es una creativa comedia francesa que se ríe de los dilemas cotidianos". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 November 2023.
- ^ Brega, Nazareno (1 September 2022). "El brindis: una comedia francesa que no termina de arrancar". Clarín (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 November 2023.
External links
edit- The Speech at IMDb