Synopsis
15 year-old Lyz, a high school student in the French Alps, has been accepted to a highly selective ski club whose aim is to train future professional athletes. Taking a chance on his new recruit, Fred, ex-champion turned coach, decides to make Lyz his shining star regardless of her lack of experience. Under his influence, Lyz will have to endure more than the physical and emotional pressure of the training. Will Lyz’s determination help her escape his grip?
Votre Filmothèque
Cast
- Noée AbitaLyz
- Jérémie RenierFred
- Marie DenarnaudLilou
- Muriel CombeauCatherine
- Maïra SchmittJustine
- Axel AuriantMaximilien
- Catherine MarchalLa mère de Justine
- Dominique ThomasLe chauffeur
- François GodartLe père de Justine
- Fred EpaudLe coach de l'équipe de France
Recommandations
- 83
IndieWire
Charlène Favier’s Slalom is a familiar story of sexual abuse, but one told with such bracing intensity that it snaps across your face like a blast of cold mountain air. - 80
The Hollywood Reporter
Beautifully directed and performed. - 80
Empire
Everything about this hard-hitting film is restrained, like a breath tightly held, and all the more powerful for it. - 80
The Irish Times
It’s a recipe for an emotional journey to match the trajectory of the title, but director Charlène Favier’s script, co-written with Antoine Lacomblez and Marie Talon, is as chilly as the permacold of its surroundings, and punctuated by DOP Yann Maritaud’s serene, snowy tableaux. - 80
CineVue
In seeking to understand both abuser and abused, Slalom offers a truly nuanced picture of abuse without sacrificing indictment. - 80
The Observer (UK)
Favier is smart on the mechanics of abuse, and the sobering inevitability of her heroine’s downhill skid. - 75
The Film Stage
Slalom ultimately becomes a story about seeing one’s passion in life corrupted through the twisted, pre-meditated manipulation of a mentor. It’s enraging and crushing in equal measure. - 70
The New York Times
The writer and director, Charlène Favier, had previous experience as a competitive skier, and she is attentive to the textures of mountainside sports and how abuse plays out in this setting.
