New Movie Releases: La Frappe, L’Espèce explosive and more

The lineup also features Sarah Arnold’s rural drama L’Espèce explosive, Claude Zidi Jr.’s comedy La Maison de nos rêves, and Sara Dosa’s environmental documentary Time and Water.

Julien Gaspar-Oliveri Explores Family Trauma in La Frappe

La Frappe arrives as a first feature from director Julien Gaspar-Oliveri, drawing directly from his own life experiences and pain. Produced by Easy Tiger and Catharsis, the narrative centers on Enzo, a young man from the south of France who lives alone with his sister. That dynamic shifts when their father returns home after serving a five-year prison sentence. 24 Heures noted that the ensuing scenes trade standard coming-of-age tropes for raw confrontations marked by shouting, questions, and unresolved trauma.

The production relies on a cast of newcomers alongside Bastien Bouillon, who plays the figure of the father. Gaspar-Oliveri employs a handheld shooting style focused tightly on close-ups to capture the story’s emotional weight. Reviewers point to newcomer Diego Murgia as a standout lead, with early projections highlighting his performance for potential acting recognition.

Sarah Arnold Pits Characters Against Wild Boars in L’Espèce explosive

Distributed by Agora Films, L’Espèce explosive unfolds in the northeast of France against a backdrop of ongoing conflict between farmers, hunters, and wild boars. When a financially squeezed farmer vanishes, a troubled, heavy-drinking Corsican gendarme arrives a year later to investigate, aided by a young psychologist. Their search eventually points toward a pack of giant wild boars reminiscent of a creature feature.

Directed by Sarah Arnold, the film premiered at the Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes. 24 Heures described the tone as a volatile mix featuring Alexis Manenti and Ella Rumpf in the lead roles, though noting that the fantastical elements and the giant boars remain largely in the background.

Chantal Ladesou and Kev Adams Pair Up in La Maison de nos rêves

Claude Zidi Jr. directs the comedy La Maison de nos rêves, backed by MyFamily, TF1 Films Production, Apollo Films, and Pascal Chantier. The plot follows a young couple seeking an affordable home who target a grand estate via a life annuity purchase, assuming the elderly owner is near death. Instead, they walk directly into an elaborate trap.

Kev Adams and Chantal Ladesou star as the mismatched duo driving the narrative. Produced within familiar comedic formulas, the project allows Zidi Jr. to build on his previous work on Maison de retraite 2.

Sara Dosa Documents Glacial Recession in Time and Water

Rounding out the current releases, the documentary Time and Water examines the rapid disappearance of Icelandic glaciers. Directed by Sara Dosa and distributed by Filmcoopi with backing from National Geographic, the film eschews standard alarmist reporting in favor of a reflective approach.

Dosa builds the documentary around the personal archives of Icelandic writer Andri Snær Magnason and his grandparents. The sound of cracking ice and historical photographs ground the narrative in a framework of personal loss and intergenerational memory.