Dir: Louise Courvoisier | France, Drama 90’
A joyful, earthy coming of age film about one of the most important things in life: Good food. Holy Cow is also a first feature for Louise Courvoisier who makes her debut along with lead actor Clément Faveau in this family filmmaking affair which has scooped up numerous awards kicking off with the Youth Prize at Cannes 2024. .
In the Limousin dairy farmer’s son Totone (Favreau) lives a carefree existence until his father’s sudden death forces him to grow up quickly and take charge of a younger sister (Luna Garret). And there are no short cuts in the farming industry.
Landing a job in a neighbouring farm making cheese has its complications. First of all the farmer’s son is his love rival and Totone gets beaten up on day one. Then the cheese-making machinery gets the better of him. Worse of all, work starts at 4am and his sister must be taken to school.
But Totone is determined. And we get a crash course in the fine art of Comte cheese-making into the bargain. And when Totone meets fellow farmer Marie Lise (Maiwene Barthélémy) they make a natural team with some dramatic heft provided by a heifer. But predictably the course of true love doesn’t run smoothly.
With a lively upbeat score provided by Charlie and Linda Courvoisier and some lush rural cinematography Holy Cow is a breakout bucolic hit with a range of naturalistic performances from Clement Faveau and his fellow cast in this impressive feature debut. @MeredithTaylor
ON RELEASE IN UK & IRISH CINEMAS | 11 April 2025