Titane (film)

A little girl named Alexia annoys her father during a drive. As she removes her seatbelt, her father turns around to scold her, causing a car crash. Alexia suffers a terrible skull injury and has a titanium plate fitted into her head. When she gets out of the hospital, she shuns her parents and embraces their car passionately.

Years later, Alexia, now an adult with a large scar on the side of her head, works as a showgirl at a motor show. One night, after a show, a male fan follows Alexia in the showroom's parking lot, declares his love to her, and forcibly kisses her; she then brutally murders him using her large metal hairpin. As she returns to shower after getting the man's drool off her, Alexia hears a banging coming from the showroom. She finds the car she modeled with earlier has turned on by itself and enters it naked. She eventually climaxes as she has sex with the car.

It is revealed that Alexia is a serial killer who has murdered several men and women in the past few months. She still lives with her parents, who seem unaware of her connection with the crimes and with whom she has a distant relationship.

Eventually, Alexia realizes she has become pregnant after motor oil begins secreting from her vagina. She tries to perform an abortion with her hairpin but fails.

Alexia attends a house party, where she has sex with her coworker Justine. Alexia murders Justine and proceeds to kill the other guests. However, a woman manages to escape. Alexia returns home and sets her own house on fire before locking her parents in their bedroom. Now wanted for murder, Alexia alters her appearance by cutting her hair, taping down her breasts and increasingly pregnant stomach, and breaking her own nose. She then goes to the police pretending to be Adrien Legrand, a young boy who had disappeared ten years before at age seven. Adrien's father, Vincent, recognizes Alexia as his missing son and refuses to do a DNA test.

Vincent, a fire captain, takes Alexia to the station where he lives and works and introduces her to his men. The firefighters are puzzled by the mute, androgynous, and apparently traumatized "Adrien," but they refrain from questioning the captain's behavior. Alexia becomes an apprentice at the station, under Vincent's supervision. As Vincent gives more responsibility to his "son" over the other experienced firefighters, one firefighter confronts Vincent about "Adrien's" identity. However, Vincent immediately shuts him down and tells him to never speak of his son.

Vincent tries to preserve his strength by injecting steroids into his aging body, but he finds that he seems to be building an immunity to them. Alexia is increasingly disturbed by his possessiveness and considers escaping from the fire station. However, after Vincent experiences a cardiac arrhythmia from injecting a large dose of steroid, Alexia decides to stay with him.

Vincent's long-estranged ex-wife comes to see her "son" but discovers a now-heavily pregnant Alexia without her body taped down. She nevertheless keeps the secret for herself, not wishing to interfere with her ex-husband's delusion, and begs Alexia to take care of him. Vincent at one point acknowledges his delusion, telling Alexia that "whoever you are, you are my son." When he inadvertently uncovers her breasts, he is clearly shocked but continues caring for her.

At a party at the fire station, the firefighters urge "Adrien" to dance to the music. Alexia breaks out her showgirl choreography, leaving everyone confused. Vincent disappointingly walks out of the crowd. After the party, Alexia has sex with a firetruck.

Alexia's body gradually breaks down, as the skin of her stomach tears to reveal new metal plates. As her pregnancy finally comes to term, Alexia reveals her real name to Vincent, briefly attempting to seduce him and then begging for his help. Vincent helps Alexia give birth, the titanium side of her skull splitting open on her final push, killing her. Vincent, in tears, holds the baby, whose spine is titanium, and tells it repeatedly, "I'm here."

• Agathe Rousselle as Alexia/Adrien
• Vincent Lindon as Vincent
• Garance Marillier as Justine
• Laïs Salameh as Rayane
• Myriem Akheddiou as Adrien's mother
• Bertrand Bonello as Alexia's father
• Dominique Frot as Old woman
• Adèle Guigue as young Alexia
• Céline Carrère as Alexia's mother
• Thibault Cathalifaud as Alexia's fan

In September 2019, it was announced that Vincent Lindon and Agathe Rousselle had joined the cast of the film, with Julia Ducournau directing the film from a screenplay she wrote. Neon is set to distribute the film in the United States.[10][11]

Production was initially set to begin in April 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[12] Principal photography eventually began in September 2020.[13]

Titane had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on 13 July 2021, where it received the Palme d'Or, the festival's top award.[14] The film also screened at New York, London and Toronto.[15][16][17]

Altitude Film Distribution and Film4 jointly acquired distribution rights for the film in the UK and Ireland in June 2021, prior to the film's Cannes premiere.[18] It was released in France by Diaphana Distribution on 14 July 2021,[2] in Belgium by O'Brother Distribution on 28 July 2021,[2] and in the United States by Neon on 1 October 2021.[19]

• List of submissions to the 94th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film
• List of French submissions for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film

• Titane at IMDb
• Titane at Rotten Tomatoes
• Titane at Metacritic