Co-written with Céline Sciamma, Noémie Merlant’s dark comedy follows three women trying to get rid of the body of a rapist.
During an extreme heatwave in Marseille, three friends—actress Élise (Noémie Merlant), webcam model Ruby (Souheila Yacoub), and writer Nicole (Sanda Codreanu) are trying to keep cool on the balcony of their shared apartment. Choking with laughter, they peep at a handsome neighbor across the street, and after a brief introduction accept his invitation for a glass of wine. Flirtation and alcohol fuel a spontaneous party, which gets out of control and ends in a bloodbath.
Dealing with sexism and violence against women, The Balconettes revisits the visual codes associated with these topics through assuming a feminist perspective or estrangement using genre tropes. A comedy, a satire, a horror, a thriller—Noémie Merlant moves between genres freely and at times chaotically. This creates a multilayered and confusing reality, which highlights the contradictions between the images that men have imposed on women and the ones that women would have chosen for themselves. Noémie Merlant offers her protagonists the opportunity to reclaim their right to be sexy and free on their own terms.
The Balconettes will be screened in French with Russian subtitles.
The film will be screened in a shortened version, as several scenes that do not comply with Russian law have been omitted.
The Balconettes
Director: Noémie Merlant
France, 2024. 98 min.
18+