Alleluia (2014 film)

Last updated

Alleluia
Alleluia (film).jpg
Film poster
Directed by Fabrice Du Welz
Written byFabrice Du Welz
Vincent Tavier
Starring Lola Dueñas
Release dates
  • 22 May 2014 (2014-05-22)(Cannes)
  • 26 November 2014 (2014-11-26)(France)
CountriesBelgium
France
LanguageFrench

Alleluia is a 2014 Belgian-French horror-drama film directed by Fabrice Du Welz. It was screened as part of the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival. [1] It received eight nominations at the 6th Magritte Awards, including Best Director for Du Welz. [2]

Contents

Plot

Gloria, a single mother and morgue worker, lives in a small apartment with her daughter. She has been reluctant to date, but signs up for an online dating service at her friend's urging. Gloria's first date with charming shoe salesman Michel goes well, and they have sex at her apartment that night.

Some time later, Michel has become a fixture in Gloria's life and he gets along well with her daughter. Gloria agrees to loan him money for a business emergency, but she falls into a depression after he disappears with the cash. She finds him at a nightclub flirting with other women and confronts him before he can take one of them home. At his place, Gloria sees photos of his previous victims, including a photo of herself. Michel explains he was sexually abused by his mother, and he now uses his sexuality to seduce women and con them out of their money. Gloria craves the thrill of his lifestyle and agrees to help him, leaving her daughter with a friend.

Michel marries Marguerite, his new victim, with Gloria posing as his recently-divorced sister. The three of them cohabit but Gloria becomes increasingly jealous and possessive over Michel and Marguerite's intimacy. Michel turns down Gloria's advances, saying it's too risky for them to be caught together. Gloria witnesses Marguerite performing fellatio on Michel, and Gloria kills Marguerite in a fit of rage. Gloria kills another one of Michel's victims after watching them have sex, and Gloria and Michel marry each other in an unofficial ceremony.

Michel's next victim, Solange, lives on a remote farmhouse with her daughter. Solange confides in Gloria and says that she's pregnant with Michel's baby, even though Michel promised not to be physically intimate with any more victims. Furious, Gloria gives Michel a hatchet and forces him to kill Solange. Solange's daughter witnesses the murder and flees in fear. Gloria attempts to kill the daughter but Michel intervenes. Gloria drowns Michel in a nearby lake, then calls her daughter and tells her she loves her.

Cast

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References

  1. "Cannes Directors' Fortnight 2014 lineup unveiled". Screendaily. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  2. "Magritte du cinéma : pluie de nominations pour Jaco van Dormael et Savina Dellicour". Le Soir (in French). 12 January 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2016.