Film Movement, the distributor of award-winning independent and foreign films, announces today that BREATHE, Mélanie Laurent’s second feature as director, will be available on DVD on February 2nd, 2016 following a critically-acclaimed theatrical run. Laurent’s assured adaptation of the sensational French young-adult novel of the same name premiered at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival (Critics Week) and was selected for the Toronto Film Festival and Hamptons Film Festival before showcasing in New York’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema.
BREATHE is a taut, nuanced story about the depths of female friendships and the dark side of teenage infatuations. The narrative begins with the instant connection between the inseparable protagonists, mesmerizingly played by Joséphine Japy and Lou de Laâge. Through shared secrets, love interests and holiday getaways, the two become close. However, this deep intimacy also entails jealousy and unrealistic expectations, and soon the teens find themselves on a dangerous trajectory toward an inevitable yet unforeseen collapse. BREATHE has been lauded by The Hollywood Reporter as “an impressive second film that features intelligent writing and several knockout performances.”
“With her sophomore feature BREATHE, actress-turned-director Mélanie Laurent…has made one of the best films of the year,” wrote The Wrap. The A.V. Club said, “…it is among the year’s finest, exploring a destructive imbalance of power within an arrestingly unusual context.” BREATHE, which has a 93% Rotten Tomato Certified Fresh rating, has also been called “spellbinding” by the New York Times; “riveting” by Art Forum; “a must-see” by Indiewire; and “expertly directed” by Time Out New York. It was also #1 in Indiewire’s “The 13 Most Criminally Overlooked Indies and Foreign Films of 2015.”
The DVD of BREATHE includes a Director’s Statement; a Behind-the-Scenes Interview with Director Mélanie Laurent and Stars Joséphine Japy and Lou de Laâge; and a bonus short film, BONNE ESPERANCE. The DVD is available to own from FilmMovement.com, Amazon.com and other retailers. Additional praise for BREATHE includes:
- “The scary, spellbinding performance of Lou De Laâge . . . is so gripping that Ms. De Laâge’s dangerous mixture of sensuality and bravado brings to mind Angelina Jolie in ‘Girl, Interrupted’ and Jeanne Moreau’s Catherine in ‘Jules and Jim.’” – Stephen Holden, The New York Times
- “It’s a chilly, elegantly assured little picture, a horror story with its roots not in fantasy but in the reality of hurt feelings” – Stephanie Zacharek, Village Voice
- “BREATHE is one of the best films of the year, taking what on paper may seem like a simple, run of the mill story, and turning it into a close and critical look at the deteriorating friendship between two young women and all that falls between them.” – Allyson Johnson, The Young Folks
- “BREATHE is a very well-orchestrated as well as acutely observed film about teen obsession, which shows a great and very promising directing talent in Melanie Laurent” – Dustin Chang, TwitchFillm
- “BREATHE is a great film. It’s gorgeously shot and acted, with a very realistic story of a friendship-gone-wrong at its center.” – After Ellen
- “BREATHE is a forceful portrait of teen friendship that will get under the viewer’s skin and linger for days. Melanie Laurent directs the film, alert to every subtle shift in power, every flicker of change, every hint of something deepening or souring in the relationship of two high school girls….Whatever you’d call it, the word “toxic” is too mild for what goes down in this French film.” – Mick LaSalle, The San Francisco Chronicle
- “Briefly, but admiringly, I want to take note of BREATHE….I can tell you that Ms. Laurent’s direction is astute and economical, that both of the film’s young stars give fine performances, and that BREATHE is a very good title for a film that ever so gradually takes your breath away.” – Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal