Are we watching or not? The colossus with feet of clay with Eric Cantona

TF1 is gearing up to air a TV movie on May 4th, which will be titled The Colossus With Feet of Clay, with Eric Cantona once again being masterful just in time.

What is “The Colossus With Feet of Clay” about? Sébastien is a former rugby player. A real colossus. Everyone between the ages of 12 and 16 sees him as a child full of joie de vivre. A feature of his southwestern homeland. But this joie de vivre is only an excuse to keep his family balanced. 4 years since Sébastien was raped. Four years of suffering and crying in silence because his predator is none other than a close relative of his parents, loved by everyone. Thirty years later, Sebastian hasn’t spoken a word and his demons are destroying him. Between wanting revenge and not wanting anyone to go through what they went through. It is therefore meeting a child, a damaged little colossus like him, and the return into his life of the one he could not love as a teenager that will force him to make the right choice. That of justice… but justice at what cost?

“You say respect that we are not animals, but you cannot speak! You just know how to knock! Why do you ask me to talk and you don’t speak? You’re in a loop, it’s the old man who won!”

The essential

With this unit, written by Aude Marcle and brilliantly directed by Stéphanie Murat, TF1 tackles an extremely important but often hidden theme, namely the rape of minors. And even more committed by members of the family. The director plunges into the horror of a story that could happen anywhere and sadly happens far too often. Uniformly cut in two parts (as is often the case with TF1), the format lends itself very well for once, as it allows the key moments of the story to be distinguished. The first part delves into the fears of these children by presenting the ordeal of Sébastien, raped for 4 years by “a family friend”; The second part shows us the long process of reconstructing Sébastien, forced to face his own demons in the face of fears that another child will suffer the same thing.

We love

Despite a frightening subject The colossus with feet of clay is a real hit and a great TV movie. First of all, by the construction in two stages, which – paradoxically, because we are in two radically different genres – is reminiscent of the IT by Stephen King, who also confronted children with their childhood fears before seeing them confront them through the personalization of the bogeyman, personified by the famous clown. Here the “Bogeyman” is very real and takes on the appearance of an “old gentleman” who, by the eve of his trial, hasn’t quite shed the monster he is.

The first part is therefore terrifying in the repetition of the terror endured by the young Sébastien, who embodies himself wonderfully Time Joy Marbot, left to his own devices in the face of his predator. The second part is more emotional without overdoing it when Sébastien and César save each other. To carry this film, what an excellent choice to entrust it to another cinema and television colossus in the person of Cantona, once again masterful in incarnation. Even though this is fiction, seeing him pronounce and “speak” those words gives more power not only to the story but also to the words of the story. Compared to him, the cast of the two epochs is just as masterful and entrusted with moments of strong emotion. One of the big scenes in the film is when the adult Sebastian comes face to face with his family to tell them what he’s been through. At this point, the implementation plays with a very nice sobriety that reinforces the very strong character, which the character then thwarts.

We will probably regret a little that the film is too short and, as so often, accelerates the theme of the second part to fit into the imposed framework. The film would have benefited from having a few more minutes on the clock to focus more on the story of Caesar, who unfortunately only appears in the background.
But the whole remains a very big television and makes it possible to propose a strong topic to be “talked about” on a big channel.