Le Retour movie storyline. Khédidja works for a wealthy Parisian family who offered her to mind their children for a summer in Corsica. Bringing along her own two teenage daughters Jessica and Farah, it is an opportunity for them to go back to the island they left 15 years earlier, in tragic circumstances.
While their mother grapples with her memories, the two girls indulge in all the summer temptations: unexpected encounters, mischief and first love experiences. Meanwhile, questions are surfacing about their distant past on the island, leading them to dig deeper into their mother’s version of the family story.
Le Retour (English: Homecoming) is a 2023 French drama film co-written and directed by Catherine Corsini. It is a family drama about a woman who returns to Corsica with her two teenage daughters for the summer. The film generated controversy for filming a scene of sexual nature involving underage actors without declaration to authorities, as well as allegations of sexual assault and poor working conditions on set. It was selected to compete for the Palme d’Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 17 May 2023. It was released in France on July 12, 2023.
Catherine Corsini, whom we watched in 2021 with Crossroads, appears before the audience again with a family story set in Corsica. In the film, which premiered in the main competition at the Cannes Film Festival, Khédidja takes on the role of babysitter for the children of a wealthy Parisian family. They will remain in Corsica throughout the summer; Khédidja’s teenage daughters join them.
Returning to this island, from which they left fifteen years ago under very bad conditions, will be traumatic for all of them: While the girls will be attracted by the summer season and experience their first loves, Khédidja will also face her dark past. Director Catherine Corsini, who spent her childhood in Corsica, examines family ties as well as emotional ups and downs in Le Retour.
Le Retour (2023)
Homecoming
Directed by: Catherine Corsini
Starring: Aïssatou Diallo Sagna, Suzy Bemba, Esther Gohourou, Lomane de Dietrich, Harold Orsoni, Cédric Appietto, Virginie Ledoyen, Denis Podalydès, Marie-Ange Geronimi
Screenplay by: Catherine Corsini, Naïla Guiguet
Production Design by: Louise le Bouc Berger
Cinematography by: Jeanne Lapoirie
Film Editing by: Frédéric Baillehaiche
Costume Design by: Virginie Montel
Makeup Department: Teo Del Frate
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Le Pacte
Release Date: May 17, 2023 (Cannes), July 12, 2023 (France)
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