The story of a young couple, Pierre and Geraldine, and their desire for a child, which leads them on a journey of initiation to Cambodia. On their difficult and transformative adventure, they must contend with obstructive authorities and the jealousies and mistrust of a small community of would-be adoptive parents.
Direction
Tavernier refuses to let anyone off the hook. No heroes here.
Acting
Carré's desperate hope curdles so gradually you barely notice.
Director
Bertrand Tavernier
Jacques Gamblin
Dr. Pierre Ceyssac
Isabelle Carré
Géraldine Ceyssac
Bruno Putzulu
Marco Folio
Lara Guirao
Annie
Frédéric Pierrot
Xavier
Maria Pitarresi
Sandrine Folio
Jean-Yves Roan
Michel
Séverine Caneele
Patricia
Gilles Gaston-Dreyfus
Yves Fontaine
Anne Loiret
Nicole
Philippe Saïd
Bernard
Rithy Panh
Monsieur Khieu
Daniel Langlet
Monsieur Detambel
Philippe Vieux
Jérôme
Nathalie Bécue
Sabine
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Tavernier based the film on real Cambodian adoption scandals of the late 1990s, when corruption was rampant and 'orphans' often had living parents. The French government suspended adoptions from Cambodia in 2001.
The Auvergne opening isn't cozy — it's Tavernier trapping his bourgeois couple in their own picturesque privilege before Cambodia dismantles every assumption they hold.
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