Heartbeats (film)
Encyclopedia
Heartbeats is a 2010 Canadian drama film
directed by Xavier Dolan
. It follows the story of two friends who both fall in love with the same man. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard
section of the 2010 Cannes Film Festival
.
The relationship culminates in a trip to stay in the vacation home of Nicolas' mother. Marie becomes jealous when Nicolas feeds Francis a marshmallow, telling him to eat it slowly like a 'striptease', and she goes to bed early. The next morning, she wakes up alone and again observes the two frolicking together from afar. She decides to leave, at which point Francis chases after her and the two end up wrestling on the ground. Nicolas is not impressed and decides to leave, saying they can love him or leave him. On returning from the trip, they don't see Nicolas, both leaving messages on his answerphone and Marie writing him a love letter. Eventually, Francis meets Nicolas and ends up pouring out his feelings, telling him he loves him and wants to kiss him. The only response from Nicolas is to ask him 'What made you think I was gay?', leaving Francis devastated. Later, Marie catches up with Nicolas in the street, and tells him about the love letter, but implies she wrote it to a female friend. From this, Nicolas comes to the conclusion that Marie has a female lover, which she denies. As Nicolas goes to leave, claiming to have left something on the stove, she tells him the truth about the letter but this makes no difference.
The film concludes with Marie and Francis re-establishing their friendship and Nicolas moving away to Asia. In the final scene, they are again at a party, looking for potential lovers, and there's a suggestion that the whole thing could start all over again.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Xavier Dolan
Xavier Dolan
Xavier Dolan , sometimes credited as Xavier Dolan-Tadros, is a Québécois actor and filmmaker, the son of Geneviève Dolan, a teacher, and Manuel Tadros, a Quebecois actor and singer of Egyptian descent...
. It follows the story of two friends who both fall in love with the same man. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's Official Selection. It is run at the Salle Debussy, parallel to the competition for the Palme d'Or.This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob...
section of the 2010 Cannes Film Festival
2010 Cannes Film Festival
The 63rd annual Cannes Film Festival was held from May 12 to May 23, 2010, in Cannes, France. The Cannes Film Festival, hailed as being one of the most recognized and prestigious film festivals worldwide, was founded in 1946. It consists of having films screened in and out of competition during the...
.
Plot
Marie and Francis first meet Nicolas at a dinner party, where there both feign disinterest in him. Over the course of the next couple of the weeks, the three form a close friendship, meeting up regularly and even sleeping together in the same bed. However, it is clear that both Marie and Francis have an interest in Nicolas beyond friendship; Marie is visibly disappointed when she hopes to enjoy an intimate meal with Nicolas at a Vietnamese restaurant, only to see Francis and his friends there, and Francis is consumed by lust for Nicolas to the extent that he vigorously masturbates over the smell of Nicolas' clothes when left alone in his apartment. Both are led on by their interpretation of Nicolas' actions, such as eating a cherry from Francis' hand and telling Marie he loves them. Their feelings lead to competition between the two friends for Nicolas' affections, evidenced by their rivalry over the gifts they buy for his birthday.The relationship culminates in a trip to stay in the vacation home of Nicolas' mother. Marie becomes jealous when Nicolas feeds Francis a marshmallow, telling him to eat it slowly like a 'striptease', and she goes to bed early. The next morning, she wakes up alone and again observes the two frolicking together from afar. She decides to leave, at which point Francis chases after her and the two end up wrestling on the ground. Nicolas is not impressed and decides to leave, saying they can love him or leave him. On returning from the trip, they don't see Nicolas, both leaving messages on his answerphone and Marie writing him a love letter. Eventually, Francis meets Nicolas and ends up pouring out his feelings, telling him he loves him and wants to kiss him. The only response from Nicolas is to ask him 'What made you think I was gay?', leaving Francis devastated. Later, Marie catches up with Nicolas in the street, and tells him about the love letter, but implies she wrote it to a female friend. From this, Nicolas comes to the conclusion that Marie has a female lover, which she denies. As Nicolas goes to leave, claiming to have left something on the stove, she tells him the truth about the letter but this makes no difference.
The film concludes with Marie and Francis re-establishing their friendship and Nicolas moving away to Asia. In the final scene, they are again at a party, looking for potential lovers, and there's a suggestion that the whole thing could start all over again.
Cast
- Monia Chokri as Marie
- Niels Schneider as Nicolas
- Xavier DolanXavier DolanXavier Dolan , sometimes credited as Xavier Dolan-Tadros, is a Québécois actor and filmmaker, the son of Geneviève Dolan, a teacher, and Manuel Tadros, a Quebecois actor and singer of Egyptian descent...
as Francis - Anne DorvalAnne DorvalAnne Dorval is a Canadian actress.-Career:Dorval may be best known for her appearance in the Quebec television series Le Coeur a ses raisons. She has also appeared in other Quebec series, such as Chambres en ville, Virginie, Paparazzi and Rumeurs, and in the film I killed my mother...
as Désirée - Anne-Élisabeth Bossé as Jeune femme 1
- Olivier Morin as Jeune homme 1
- Magalie Lépine Blondeau as Jeune femme 2
- Éric Bruneau as Jeune homme 2
- Gabriel Lessard as Jeune homme 3
- Bénédicte Décary as Jeune femme 3
- François BernierFrançois BernierFrançois Bernier was a French physician and traveller. He was born at Joué-Etiau in Anjou. He was the personal physician of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb for around 12 years during his stay in India....
as Baise 1 - Benoît McGinnisBenoit McGinnisBenoit McGinnis is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor who was nominated for a Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in Le Banquet...
as Baise 2 - François Xavier Dufour as Baise 3
- Anthony Huneault as Antonin
- Patricia Dulasne as Coiffeuse
- Jody Hargreaves as Jody
- Clara Palardy as Clara
- Minou Petrowski as Caissière
- Perrettte Souplex as Coiffeuse
- Sophie Desmarais as Rockabill
- Marie-Christine Cormier as Barmaid
- Louis GarrelLouis GarrelLouis Garrel is a French actor. He is best known for his starring role in The Dreamers, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci...
as L'invité à la soirée finale (Special Appearance)