“La voie royale” tells the story of survival at an elite school
Published: Thursday, Apr 25th 2024, 11:10
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Frédéric Mermoud's third feature film "La voie royale" follows the path of a mathematically gifted schoolgirl from the countryside. She attends a preparatory class for the future elite. The story revolves around the question of social advancement. The film impresses with strong performances from the actresses.
Maud Wyler as tough-as-nails physics teacher Claire Fresnel won the Swiss Film Award for Best Supporting Actress and it quickly becomes clear why: the lecturer bullies the protagonist Sophie however and wherever she can. The fact that there is more than just malice or frustration behind this can be seen on Wyler's face at all times.
The story tells of farmer's daughter Sophie (Suzanne Jouannet), who leaves her parents' farm on the advice of her math teacher to prepare for the exam at one of the "Grandes Écoles". Things suddenly don't go well in the preparatory class. She is struggling to follow the material. What's more, her classmates all seem to know where they want to go later, outside of this elite bubble.
Inner battles, but never victims
Sophie doesn't. She struggles. Never with her background, but with what it demands of her. With her - highly gifted - friend at school, with a fellow student to whom she feels attracted, with everything, really. Between new acquaintances, mistrust and failed exams, she has to realize that admission to the Polytechnic is more than just a competition. And that the "voie royale" can be winding, and that the royal road to the still unknown technical profession also involves confronting social classes and political views.
"I always try to move on the border between romanticism and a certain form of realism," said director Frédéric Mermoud according to press documents. He has succeeded throughout. Sophie, who has to fight inner and outer battles, is never degraded to the status of a victim. She may not yet understand the game of the career ladder as well as her fellow students, but she recognizes the essentials: If anyone stands in her way, it is herself.
Mermoud gets up close, which is to be understood ambiguously. The camera is often focused on faces, at chest height or in close-up. And you understand that teacher Fresnel's relationship with her students is more complex than you might think. And Sophie will solve the problem.
*This text by Nina Kobelt, Keystone-SDA, was realized with the help of the Gottlieb and Hans Vogt Foundation.
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