“It's the craziest film at the Cannes Film Festival.”, to caution News diary Last May. Diamantino east “A real explosion, fire from grape bullets pouring on the spectator.” Lisbon daily newspaper continued. Thriller, sci-fi, political satire, farce… Borrowing from all accounts, the first feature film from Americans Gabriel Abrantes and Daniel Schmidt delighted critics as much as it delighted festival audiences. On May 16, it won the Critics' Week Grand Prize.
It was filmed in Portugal and in the Portuguese language, and features a football star who resembles Cristiano Ronaldo. Although he is as stupid as he is handsome, the Virgin Diamantino would be lost to humanity if he did not miss a crucial penalty kick in the World Cup final. From now on, it is an existential crisis. Everything in and around him is heading towards the abyss. Unwittingly, he sets up a cloning experiment, intended to ensure that Portugal will have a football team of eleven Diamantino. This would serve the goals of fanatical extremist nationalists, who are eager to anesthetize the Portuguese people into convincing them to leave the European Union. But the treatment causes the footballer's breasts to grow. Who decides to adopt a young Mozambican refugee? Who turns out to be a secret police officer, responsible for investigating the tax evasion case of which he is guilty. Global Health Organization…
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Celebrity worship, the rise of nationalism, transhumanism, reality TV, transience or even the refugee crisis: Diamantino It addresses all the topics that worry our Western societies, and their representation in the media and social networks. We met the two young directors of This UFO the day after their film premiered in Cannes. interview.
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mail international – In France we have this proverb “He who loves good things also chats.” You clearly enjoyed making fun of the world of football. But are you a football fan?
Gabriel Abrantes : I agree with this proverb! Football is the sport we love the most. We played it when we were kids, but I was really bad: I'd stand there with my fist on my hip, or I'd go the wrong way. But we both, without being keen on following club and league news, love watching good matches. We watch moments of drama or tragedy that happen there, such as Zidane's header in the 2006 World Cup final, or Cristiano Ronaldo's injury at the start of the 2016 European Championship final.
Where did you get the idea to make a football player the hero of your film? ?
Daniel Schmidt : We had the idea of making a film about a famous icon that would be known all over the world. We looked in different countries. In the United States, we could be inspired by a reality TV star, Lance Armstrong, or Madonna. When we went to Europe and Portugal, football imposed itself on us. But returning to your previous question, the issue was neither admired nor criticized: we wanted to make a film about a popular culture celebrity, to see how she reacted to the struggles and crises of that beginning. 21stH a century.
Your screenplay borrows a lot from the fairy tale register. It includes, Bill Mill, a football player who improvises as a knight, a so-called orphan, and evil sisters like Cinderella's sisters… Why did you choose this narrative world?
Gabriel Abrantes : Our film touches on so many themes: the refugee crisis, cloning, nationalism, tax havens, adoption, a love story… The script takes so many different paths that it seemed to us that the use of storytelling was appropriate to do so. this. Our plot is completely whimsical and crazy, and we wanted to make it accessible to as many people as possible.
Daniel Schmidt : We were very curious to apply the Record of Wonders to the contemporary world, and thought it would have interesting implications.
Your film mixes a lot of themes but also with a lot of references : stories, karate Kidfascist propaganda, reality television, Iron Man…
Gabriel Abrantes : Yes, it's a movie adaptation. We have spent a lot of energy distancing ourselves from the ideology that accompanies each type, in doing away with the social and political functions that were attached to previous representations. Hence the quotes. But what's interesting about the film is that the actor Carlotto Cotta, who plays Diamantino, is not a quote. It's more than just a reference to Ronaldo, we have access to him directly. When the movie starts people are surprised, they start laughing, then they discover the character, they relate to him and they tremble for him.
What were your inspirations for creating the Diamantino character? ?
Gabriel Abrantes : We designed him to be an alter ego for Voltaire's Candide or Balthazar the Donkey Random BalthazarThe film is directed by Robert Bresson [sorti en 1966]. He creates an innocent and sympathetic character, at the center of all the pressures of the world. He is so naive and trusting that he welcomes everything that happens to him with open arms. Her body changes and her breasts grow. His adopted son turns out to be a woman, a police officer responsible for investigating him. But he is so free from prejudice that he accepts everything.
Daniel Schmidt : Diamantino, with his ability to love and accept his transformation and sexual flexibility, offers an openness and innocence that would be a good antidote to the many crises shaking Europe and the world. We wanted to portray not only the way he analyzes events, but the way his body adapts – and end the film on a pair of contrasting lovers, the most socially corrupt: the adopted son who is actually a woman. A lesbian who fell in love with her father [adoptif] Whose breasts grow. They are both happy and feel good together.
