A Faithful Man (French: L'Homme fidèle) is a 2018 French romantic comedy-drama film directed by Louis Garrel, from a screenplay by Garrel and Jean-Claude Carrière. It stars Laetitia Casta, Lily-Rose Depp, Joseph Engel and Garrel.
A Faithful Man | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Louis Garrel |
Written by |
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Produced by | Pascal Caucheteux |
Starring |
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Cinematography | Irina Lubtchansky |
Edited by | Joelle Hache |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Ad Vitam Distribution |
Release dates |
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Running time | 75 minutes |
Country | France |
Language | French |
Box office | $1.9 million[1][2] |
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on 9 September 2018. It was released in France on 26 December 2018.
Abel (Garrel) learns that his girlfriend, Marianne (Casta), is leaving him for his best friend Paul, who is the father of her child. Seven or eight years later, Paul dies and Abel and Marianne resolve to restart their relationship as she and her son Joseph (Engel) move in. Joseph claims that his father died because Marianne poisoned him. Abel is also sought after by Ève (Depp), Paul's younger sister who's been infatuated with Abel since she was 14 years old. When Ève directly tells Marianne to leave Abel or "it's war", Marianne prompts the confused Abel to sleep with Ève. Now caught in a difficult situation between two women and a young boy with an eerie fixation on murder, will Abel keep his relationship with Marianne intact?
In February 2018, it was announced Louis Garrel would direct the film, from a screenplay he wrote with Jean-Claude Carrière, and star in the film, alongside Laetitia Casta and Lily-Rose Depp. Why Not Productions produced the film.[3][4][5]
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on 9 September 2018,[6] followed by its US premiere at the New York Film Festival.[7][8] Shortly after, Kino Lorber acquired US distribution rights to the film.[9] It was released in France on 26 December 2018.[10] In the United States, it received a limited release on 19 July 2019.[11]
A Faithful Man holds an 81% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 57 reviews, with an average of 6.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "A Faithful Man's lack of tonal commitment may frustrate, but the end results should still prove entertaining for viewers in the mood for a French romantic farce."[12] On Metacritic, the film holds a rating of 67 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[13]