There are a couple of scenes in this French drama where you might almost think that the film-makers have deepfaked the young Jean-Paul Belmondo back on to the screen, and that AI replicas in film – one of the flashpoints of the Hollywood actors’ strike – has already come to pass. Not so fast. The actor we’re watching is his grandson, Victor Belmondo, and in closeup, at certain angles, the resemblance really is uncanny: that nose (though a little less lopsided) and the pillowy lips arranged to smouldering leading-man effect.
Belmondo appears in a supporting role in a tasteful literary adaptation that has impeccable manners, based on a bestselling autobiographical novel by Philippe Besson (dubbed the “French Brokeback Mountain” when it was translated into English). The story follows famous novelist Stéphane Belcourt (played by Guillaume de Tonquédec) as he returns to his humdrum home town for the first time in 35 years. Growing up gay in provincial France, Stéphane felt different and couldn’t wait to escape. Now he’s back, being paid by a luxury cognac brand to speak at a black tie dinner. The joke is that Stéphane doesn’t drink; he’s too controlled for that, a little uptight even.
Belmondo plays Lucas, a young marketing exec for the cognac company. He looks familiar to Stéphane, too, and turns out to be related to his first love. In flashback we see gawky young Stéphane in his final year of high school, gobsmacked when babe-magnet Thomas (Julien De Saint Jean) propositions him. A relationship develops: sex only at first. Thomas makes Stéphane promise he won’t tell anyone about their romance. There’s a sensual feel to this depiction of young love that I preferred to the pensive, polite drama of the present day scenes. And in a wider way, the themes of shame and internalised homophobia do feel familiar, explored by many gay coming-of-age dramas.
• Lie With Me is released on 18 August in UK and Irish cinemas, and on digital platforms, with an Australian release date to be confirmed.
