Your film is adapted from Laurent Petitmangin’s novel, “Ce que il fait de nuit”. Why did you choose to take inspiration from it to create “Playing with Fire”?
Delphine Coulin: We were worried about the political climate in France. And, at the same time, we wanted to make a film about family. When we read the book, we said to ourselves that it was exactly what we needed since the story tells of a family put in danger by the political discussions that arise between its members. We wanted to show how politics can jeopardize the unity of a family and beyond that, how politics can jeopardize the unity of a country.
In your film, Fus, the eldest of the siblings and played by Benjamin Voisin, becomes radicalized and approaches a small far-right group. A subject more relevant than ever.
Delphine Coulin: This is a subject that concerns us. We were in Chicago to present the film just before Trump’s election and lots of people identified with it. For them, the story would be that of a son who would vote for Trump. Democracy is under threat in quite a few countries. We are very attached to freedom of expression, to individual freedoms and, inevitably, the desire, among some, to see more authoritarian regimes arrive worries us. It is felt that cinema must take hold; as much as the other arts; of this type of subject to try to create a space for critical thoughts. We can hope that people think, discuss among themselves and the more we discuss, the more likely we are that democracy will survive these turbulent times.
Pierre, the father of the family, played by Vincent Lindon, does not have the same political convictions as his son. Just like his youngest son, Louis, played by Stefan Crepon.
Muriel Coulin: The father is not at all racist while his son is starting to be. We are in Vincent Lindon’s eyes throughout the film and that is what is interesting, we discover at the same time as him that he does not know his sons as well as he thinks. And he says it at one point: he raised them the same and yet, they are different. We go from discovery to astonishment but, despite everything, his love for them is unconditional.
We believe that cinema must embrace this type of subject as much as the other arts to try to create a space for critical thought.
Male figures are omnipresent while there are very few women. For what ?
Muriel Coulin: We understand that the mother has left. These three men find themselves among themselves, a little distraught, but we feel the presence of the mother at every moment. We wanted the secondary characters who were male in the book to become female in the film. All the characters of power and knowledge are played by women. It was our own little political touch, they bring light to the night these men are going through.
How did you choose the actors?
Delphine Coulin: From reading the book, Vincent Lindon was obvious. We wrote with him in mind. He is known to be an upright and committed person. All questions of education and political drift are subjects that interest him. For the boys, we learned that Benjamin Voisin and Stefan Crepon were very friends and that they had been roommates for five years. They have the complicity of two brothers and they are great actors.
-Vincent Lindon received the best actor prize at the Venice Film Festival in 2024 for your film “Playing with Fire”. This moment must have been charged with emotion.
Muriel and Delphine Coulin: He received the prize from Isabelle Huppert, facing great American actors: Adrien Brody, Joaquin Phoenix, Brad Pitt, George Clooney… That’s no small thing! It was a magical moment with a long standing ovation.
This is the fourth feature film that you have made together. One of them, “17 Girls”, was produced in Lorient. Are you planning to shoot a new film in Brittany?
We always think about it, it’s our founding ground. We haven’t yet decided what to do next… In any case, we are well supported in Brittany. During the special tour to promote “Playing with Fire”, which we wanted to do in the region, we sold out every time.
Practical
“Playing with fire”, by Delphine and Muriel Coulin, with Vincent Lindon, Benjamin Voisin and Stefan Crepon.
Released January 22, 1:58 am.
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