The Don Juan interpreted by Tahar Rahim, in Serge Bozon's film (1), is not the one we believe.
Yes, he is a seducer, a smooth talker and a manipulator, with the grace of a beast and a flowing gaze.
But he does not wear a starched doublet, nor does he chain conquests before rejecting them.
The character of Tirso de Molina reinvented by Tahar Rahim is an inverted Don Juan, an actor of today, a man heartbroken by the woman who left him (played by Virginie Efira), whom he then sees in everyone he comes across.
A mythical role that the actor reinvents by lending him his presence and his depth.
A true romantic hero.
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Don Juan
, the trailer
In full confusion
Madame Figaro .- Does this
Don Juan
say anything about men today?
Tahar Rahim .-
I don't know, because I don't pretend to say that there is a male role model.
But what I like is that it shows, by revisiting this myth, that the heartbreak in man also exists, that it can be upsetting and very difficult to go through.
But also that a man can be that of a single woman.
All these stories of actors who can't get out of their character and sometimes even have to be interned, that doesn't exist for me.
Tahar Rahim
Your character is an actor. What does the film reveal about this profession?
It tells the daily life of a working actor, preparing for a role before going on stage, a very simple thing.
But what I found interesting is that the film evokes the confusion that one can feel towards a character and oneself.
We play so much with our feelings, we try to give maximum sincerity so that sometimes we can get a little lost.
That said, all these stories of actors who can't get out of their character and sometimes even have to be interned, that doesn't exist for me.
There are things that remain, of course, you can be boring after a shoot because you're still a bit of someone else, but I know who I am.
How was your work with Virginie Efira?
Working with Virginie is great.
She's a great person, smart and pretty, she's kind, super talented, very bright: frankly, she really has it all.
And in the game, it fuses.
Every morning was like meeting my school friend at recess.
You see, what it feels like when you're little, that you're in a hurry for the bell to ring to go see your friend and do the 400 knocks?
That's kind of how I felt on set.
"06400 Cannes": the postcard from the Cannes Film Festival 2022, episode 2
love in the movies
Even if it is tragic,
Don Juan
is a very romantic love film.
What is your definition of romanticism?
It's being able to satisfy the person you love.
It goes from pleasing her to surprising her.
Not based on what we imagine romanticism to be, but rather on what she has in her heart.
In short, it is to listen.
And what is your favorite love movie?
There is first
On the road to Madison
, because it goes back to what I say about romanticism: it's not just giving flowers and chocolates.
This film is genius because it's a real, sincere, accidental, unconsummated love story between two people who failed each other, but lived it anyway.
And the other one is a classic, it's
Ghost
.
Once again, it's about pushing a love story out of every possible way, believing that love can keep a ghost on earth until it frees its beloved from her grief.
And at the same time, it's super funny, and Maurice Jarre's music is extraordinary.
Patrick Swayze is sublime.
It's a complete film, which touches me a lot.
(1)
Don Juan
by Serge Bozon,