Le Souffle au cœur
Louis Malle
May 1954. Laurent is 15 and going through the difficult transition from childhood to adolescence. Un-loved by his father, Laurent passionately loves his mother Clara, a free-spirited woman. Diagnosed with a heart murmur, he goes with her for treatment in a small spa town for treatment.
With : Léa Massari, Benoit Ferreux, Daniel Gelin, Marc Minocourt, Fabien Ferreux, Michaël Lonsdale, Ave Ninchi, Jacqueline Chauveau, Corinne Kersten
Screenplay : Louis Malle
Image : Ricardo Aronovitch
Sound : Jean-Claude Laureux
Decors : Jean-Jacques Caziot, Philippe Turlure
Editing : Suzanne Baron
Screenplay : Louis Malle
Image : Ricardo Aronovitch
Sound : Jean-Claude Laureux
Decors : Jean-Jacques Caziot, Philippe Turlure
Editing : Suzanne Baron
Production : NEF, Vides cinematografica, Franz Seitz Filmproduktion
Distribution: Gaumont
http://www.gaumont.fr/
Distribution: Gaumont
http://www.gaumont.fr/
Having initially wanted to adapt Georges Bataille's Ma mère, but Louis Malle gave up on this idea, preferring to take inspiration from the “wild and imaginary images of [his] own childhood”. Giving the character of Laurent characteristics similar to his own – a love of jazz, of literature, the tyranny of his older brothers – and exploring a subject close to his heart, Malle said that he had made a film which was a “mix of autobiography and fantasy”. Le Souffle au Coeur (Murmur of the Heart) caused an outcry in France since it covered a taboo subject with a free tone. “I think that this film gave people a double take: they liked it a lot, but after thinking about it said ‘wait a minute, that's scandalous'. I was very happy” (L. Malle).