Benoît Delhomme was not destined to direct ‘Perfect Lives’, the English version of Olivier Masset-Depasse’s film, ‘Duelles’. Committed as a cinematographer, Delhomme took over the project three days before filming was to begin. Encouraged by the protagonists, Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway, Delhomme accepted the challenge of making his debut as a filmmaker. “Having the trust of the two actresses encouraged me to take this risk. They knew that I was not only interested in lighting and framing, but also in how to tell the story,” shares the director.
“They both live an idyllic traditional lifestyle with well-tended gardens, successful husbands and children of the same age.”
— Jessica Chastain
‘Perfect Lives’ is a psychological thriller, which shows Chastain and Hathaway as the neighbors Alice and Celine, 1960s housewives in suburban America. Under Delhomme’s direction, form and content achieve exquisite tension. Jealousy, paranoia and emotional collapse are resoundingly exposed in the performances of Chastain and Hathaway, who give their characters a suffocating emotional language.
“This was one of those characters that you don’t want to take home,” Hathaway admits about living the experience of losing a child through her character and having to repeat the scene of Celine cradling her dead son like a Pieta. “I’m usually quite relaxed on set, but this film forced me to create a separation between work and my real life”, confesses the actress who gathered the entire production team insisting that they call her Celine during filming. “That was my way of protecting myself because my biggest fear in this life is losing a child. Fortunately, I had the support of the entire team, starting with Jessica (Chastain).”
“They both live an idyllic traditional lifestyle with well-tended gardens, successful husbands and children the same age,” Chastain explains. However, the perfect harmony is broken after a tragic accident. Guilt, suspicion and paranoia combine to undo their brotherly bond and begin a psychological battle of wills when maternal instinct reveals its darker side. “The 1960s were a very explosive time in our society in terms of gender, where women were beginning to find their freedom and be heard,” Chastain admits.
Both in fiction and in reality, both actresses fight against the gender norms of being a housewife, stopping their career to start a family and waiting for their husband’s needs and desires. “I think there is still a long way to go because We always set the bar higher for women. than men, creating expectations that are unfair. “There are certain beliefs that are imposed on women in the media, from the tone of their voice to how they present themselves in the world in terms of their femininity,” continues the Oscar-winning actress for ‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye’.
“I had to give him space to create his role, and I was fascinated by his way of infecting the rest of the cast with anxiety.”
— Anne Hathaway on Jessica Chastain
A friendship without barriers
“It takes actors of Jessica and Anne’s caliber to communicate the complexity of these two characters,” Masset-Depasse said. “The relationship between mother and child is the most powerful connection between two human beings. When this bond is broken, conventional morality and even sanity are called into question. In the closed-door atmosphere of 1960s America, ‘Perfect Lives’ becomes a terrifying, high-pressure powder keg.”
Addressing the deterioration of their friendship, Hathaway and Chastain are good friends in real life, having worked together on two previous films, the first being Christopher Nolan’s ‘Interstellar’ more than a decade ago. Hathaway assured that Chastain was “one of those actresses who amazes you on set because of her ability to transform herself. She has incredible talent. I had to give him space to create his role, and I was fascinated by his way of infecting the rest of the cast with anxiety.” Chastain herself admitted that it was very “complicated” to share this character with Anne because she didn’t want to affect her real-life friendship. “We’re playing two friends in conflict, and it’s not easy to forget that the person in front of you is someone you care about,” Chastain revealed.
The actresses’ close friendship off-screen helped them overcome the tensions of fiction, while fostering an atmosphere of female solidarity. “It was amazing to work together again because I knew I had someone I could trust. Make a movie in less than three weeks It’s not easy, but when you have someone like Annie, who is an intelligent and professional actress and producer, you know that you will get to the end without any problem.
“Actors of Jessica and Anne’s caliber are needed to communicate the complexity of these two characters”
— Benoit Delhomme
For both of them it was important to highlight the second reading of the story “it goes beyond the story of psychological suspense, since ‘Perfect Lives’ brings to light the horrors of the lack of bodily autonomy: the lack of decisions regarding fertility and women’s mental health in the 1960s. Having someone by your side in times when we must let ourselves be carried away by emotions and keep our mental health safe is very important to me,” Chastain admits. “She’s the kind of person you want to have by your side, she should rule the world. It would be a much better world!” Hathaway replied. The actress stressed her belief that mental health is very important. “One of the things that broke my character’s heart was how stigmatized her pain was, and that stigma isolated her and made everything worse. Something I think the film does a good job of is showing that, especially during this time, women were very isolated and had prescribed identities that were based on external notions of gender. And that’s really, really toxic. “We live in a society that does not respect people’s bodily autonomy, we are going to continue seeing acts of violence and we cannot continue to go backwards.”
Female solidarity is explored throughout this film as an engine that largely sustains society. “As a human being, walking through Hollywood as a woman, I need friends like Anne. My character was an exploration not only of motherhood, but of anxiety. She faces many restrictions and reactions against the woman she longs to be, and I I feel quite different in my life. “I’ve tried to connect with something outside of myself,” Chastain concluded.
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June is the release date of ‘Vidas Perfectas’
