“The Man of Clay” or the drift of feelings, with Emmanuelle Devos and Raphaël Thiéry

The first film written and directed by Anaïs Tellenne, “The Man of Clay” surprises with its subject, its treatment on the edge of the fantastic and its interpretation.

Anaïs Tellenne demonstrates originality and ambition in her first feature film, The Man of Clay which comes out Wednesday January 24, with Emmanuelle Devos and Raphaël Thiéry. Story of the meeting of the guardian of a large property and his heiress, the film plays on mysterious atmospheres which nourish an intimate thriller.

Guardian of an uninhabited manor in Morvan, Raphaël (Raphaël Thiéry), with only one eye, lives with his mother in an outbuilding at the entrance to a large estate. The days pass and resemble each other, until one stormy night when Garance (Emmanuelle Devos), heiress of the place, arrives and finds a building that has been left for a long time. Between the urban and the rural a reciprocal fascination is established which shakes up the order of things.

Author of her screenplay and director, Anaïs Tellenne shines with her writing which favors the characters rather than the plot. Atmospheric film set in a gothic mansion, The Man of Clay is reminiscent of a haunted house film. The castle sweats with ghosts, with a past, if not a past, charged. But the filmmaker does not take this path, she prefers the strange relationships that will link Garance to Raphaël. Rather than words, Anaïs Tellenne favors gestures and looks to indicate trouble. The mystery is increased tenfold.

Story of a look

The arrival of the urban beauty in this universe set like clockwork gives rise to new feelings in Raphaël, surprised to see the way his beautiful boss looks at him. Artist, sculptor, Garance has a different perspective from ordinary mortals. The story of The Man of Clay is that of this look and its consequences for the model. A sort of contemporary Quasimodo, Raphaël finds in Garance an Esméralda who will not be coveted by any Phoebus, but who will remain an enigma.

Disappeared as she appeared, Garance will remain like an enchanted parenthesis for Raphaël. If Anaïs Tellenne’s production remains wise, it distills a carnal romance which is at the heart of the film, in the atypical physique of the guard, or the life-size sculpture that Garance creates. Between the two, there is a sensuality that Anaïs Tellenne installs in a sleepy province, where the village idiot becomes a prince in his kingdom.

The sheet

Gender : Drama
Director: Anaïs Tellenne
Actors: Emmanuelle Devos, Raphaël Thiéry, Mireille Pitot
Country : France
Duration : 1h34
Exit : January 24, 2024
Distributer : New Story

Synopsis: Raphael only has one eye. He is the guardian of a mansion in which no one lives anymore. At almost 60 years old, he lives with his mother in a small house located at the entrance to the large bourgeois estate. Between mole hunting, bagpipes and rides in the postwoman’s Kangoo, the days follow one another and are similar. One stormy night, Garance, the heiress, returns to the family home. Nothing will ever be the same again.