THREE FRIENDS
(Trois amies)
CINEMA COMPETITION
RENOIR THEATRE
Drama, Comedy, Romance
SATURDAY NOVEMBER 2
4:50 pm (Screening ends at 7:10 pm)
Followed by a conversation with actor Damien Bonnard
Presented in association with:
Pyramide International
North American Premiere | France | 2024 | Drama, Romance, Comedy | 117 min | In French with English subtitles
Directed by: Emmanuel Mouret
Written by: Emmanuel Mouret, Carmen Leroi
Produced by: Frédéric Niedermayer (Moby Dick Films), Arte France Cinéma, Auvergne Rhône-Alpes Cinéma
Cinematography: Laurent Desmet
Film Editing: Martial Salomon
Original Score: Benjamin Esdraffo
Cast: Camille Cottin, Sara Forestier, India Hair, Damien Bonnard, Grégoire Ludig, Vincent Macaigne, Eric Caravaca, Mathieu Métral
International Sales: Pyramide International
Joan has fallen out of love with Victor, her long-time partner and father of their seven-year-old daughter. Anguished over that turn of events, she doesn’t know what to do. Her best friend, Alice, finds the situation totally normal — all relationships run out of steam. That’s why Alice has opted for the safety of a man who adores her, but she’s less rapturous about. Because being in love only makes you crazy and insecure. However, unbeknownst to Alice, her boyfriend is having an affair with their mutual friend, Rebecca, the seemingly more free-spirited and adventurous of the three friends. Once again, Emmanuel Mouret presents us with a very Rohmeresque/Allenesque set-up — think My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend or Hannah and Her Sisters — once again, juxtaposing fidelity and duplicity, passion and companionship, trust and possessiveness… in a philosophical attempt to grasp that elusive conundrum called love. All three female leads are pitch-perfect, yet it’s the ever-beguiling Vincent Macaigne who both steals our hearts and perhaps offers the sagest of counsel to the lovelorn.
Writer-director Emmanuel Mouret was first introduced to American audiences at COLCOA in 2005. He’s directed 12 feature films to date. Vénus et Fleur (COLCOA 2005) and Change of Address (COLCOA 2007) both premiered at the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes, and Shall We Kiss? (COLCOA 2008) premiered in Venice. The Art of Love (COLCOA 2012) won the Foreign Press Award at the Hamburg Film Festival and the Best Screenplay Award at the Montréal World Film Festival. Other titles include Another Life (2013), Caprice (COLCOA 2015), and Lady J (2018). Love Affair(s) (COLCOA 2021) was named Best French Film by the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics, nabbed a Best Screenplay Award at the Faro Island Film Festival, a Lumière Award for Best Film, and earned 14 César nominations, including Best Director and Best Film, and a Best Supporting Actress Award for Émilie Dequenne. His Diary of a Fleeting Affair, premiered in Cannes and won the Critics Award at TAFFF 2022. Three Friends premiered in competition at this year’s Venice Film Festival and is presented at TAFFF prior to its French theatrical release.
