Les Héroïques

Michel, a former junkie, is an eternal kid who dreams only of motorcycles and hangs out with his older son Léo and his friends. At fifty, he has to take care of the baby he just had with his ex, and struggles not to repeat the same mistakes and be a good guy. Michel is an eternal teenager in the body of a fifty-year-old: he hangs out with his grown-up son Léo and his friends, dreams of motorcycles, and seems to have long since shaken off any sense of responsibility. But reality catches up with him when he suddenly has to take care of a baby he had with his ex. Between everyday life in Paris, old habits, and the desire for a new beginning, he struggles not to make the same mistakes again and to finally become a reliable person. In the process, his desire for freedom, his role as a father, and his self-image clash violently. As the story unfolds, THE HEROICS, Maxime Roy's feature film debut, takes center stage. The film combines social drama and family history with a direct look at dependence, responsibility, and the question of what actually makes a good father. Michel seeks support from Léo and his clique, while at the same time having to learn to accept boundaries and show care. THE HEROICS was presented in 2021 in the official program of the Festival de Cannes as a Séance spéciale. The result is a French film about second chances that does not smooth over closeness and friction, but consistently makes them visible.