In 2011 French Thesps Omar Sy and Anne Le Ny He co-starred in the hit comedy movie “Untouchable”. Now the two are reunited in the domestic thriller.”Out of ControlStarring “Lupin” star Sy in one of the leading roles, Elodie Bouchez (“All Your Faces”, “The Dreamlife of Angels”), José Garcia (“Totems”, “The Axe”) and Vanessa Paradis (” Knife + Heart ,” “Café de Flore”), with Le Ny directing and co-writing with Axella Cachman.

“There was a real connection and warmth between us then, and it was easy to rekindle that 13 years later,” says Le Ny, who starred opposite Matt Damon in “Stillwater” and earned her first writing/directing credit for her breakthrough film. “Those Left Behind” (2008).

World premiere of his seventh picture as director, “Out of Control (“Dis moi juste que tu m’aimes”) Tallinn Dark Nights Film Festival The official competition on November 16 is produced by Move Movie’s Bruno Levy; A co-production between Sy’s production company Korokoro, France 2 Cinéma and La Compagnie Cinématographique & Panache Productions, with support from Canal+, Disney+ and France Televisions. M6 Group’s SND will handle global sales and French distribution until February 19, 2025.

“I am very excited to be selected for the main competition and to attend Tallinn. “I am a big fan of the Baltic German fiction writer Eduard von Keyserling, who wrote about the historical region of Courland,” says Le Ny.

He returns to the thriller genre with “Out of Control” and is tried for the first time in “Le Torrent”, starring Garcia. “With drama and tension suddenly emerging in an ordinary family, I was keen to explore it from a slightly different angle.”

In the photo, Sy plays Julien, a school counselor who is married to Marie (Bouchez) and has two children. When Julien’s first love, Anaëlle (Paradis), returns to town, the insecure Marie fears that her 15-year marriage will not be able to withstand Anaëlle’s irresistible charm and finds solace in her flirtatious boss, Thomas (Garcia). But what he sees as a one-time relationship turns into a dangerous obsession for Thomas.

“This is a psychological thriller with manipulation, deception, and love at its core,” says Le Ny. “You often see stories on screen about first love or the end of love, but rarely do you see stories about the ‘middle’ of love or lasting love. The question is: In a 15-year marriage, what remains of love when the relationship almost turns into a business partnership? It’s a thriller where you see the couple discussing laundry and heating issues. “I wanted the housework to be mostly like the organic material in the photo,” says Le Ny.

To enrich his material, the filmmaker took inspiration from classic photographs about marriage: “Marriage Scenes” by Ingmar Bergman, “Husbands and Wives” by Woody Allen and “The Marriage Story” by Noah Baumbach. And, of course, “Fatal Attraction,” Adrian Lyne’s thriller about neurotic obsession.

“’Fatal Attraction’ is a great thriller, but it’s also full of gender stereotypes,” says Le Ny. “In the movie, Michael Douglas’s wife (played by Anne Archer) is, of course, a housewife, and her lover, Glenn Close, is a successful, independent woman, but a complete crazy! So my idea was to turn the tables and make Sy a cuckold husband who has to support his wife.”

According to Le Ny, the theme of marriage was also one of the reasons why Sy joined the team. “Omar has a long-term marital relationship, which is not a common situation in our profession,” he emphasizes with a smile. “He loved his character and how Julien’s job as the school counselor was to ‘fix’ things. Julien is also very romantic; Even though he was able to move on and be happy with Marie, he could never forget his first love.”

For his nuanced role, Sy “had to dig deep into his heart and soul, seek something else in a measured way, without relying on his natural charm and flamboyance. It was a pleasure to work with him,” says Le Ny.

As a character actor, Le Ny also praises the other three Thesps. Garcia made Thomas the ideal, menacingly seductive ex-lover Paradis, “a narcissistic pervert, absolutely charming, sincere and completely believable”: “Who would want Vanessa Paradis to be your husband’s ex?” he asks the helmsman mischievously. Bouchez later managed to bring “a lot of tenderness and vulnerability combined with the inner strength that gradually develops in photography.” “

Ultimately, Le Ny thinks that, beyond the thriller tropes, “Out of Control” is “an empowering story of resilience where, although she is initially seduced by her boss, the main female character is able to push him away after understanding his neurotic behavior.” “I wanted to show that it is possible to confront your predator,” he says.

Filming took place in and around the city of Vannes in Brittany, one of the directors’ favorite locations in France. “We had a great time, despite a very wet shoot and three major storms, thanks in particular to the charming and very diverse crew and four leads,” comments Le Ny.

“Out of Control” will compete in Tallinn for the Grand Prize of €20,000 ($21,300), with the awards ceremony scheduled for the festival’s closing night on November 23.