THE IDEAL PALACE

by Nils Tavernier (France, 2018, 1h44)

starring Jacques Gamblin, Laetitia Casta, Aurélien Wiik, Natacha Lindinger, Bernard Le Coq

It is the late nineteenth century and Joseph Ferdinand Cheval is a simple postman who criss-crosses the department of Drôme every day, from village to village. Solitary and taciturn, he is bowled over when he meets the woman of his life, Philomène. They have a daughter, Alice. For this child, whom he loves more than anything, Cheval throws himself into an absurd endeavour: to build her an incredible palace with his own hands. He will spend 33 years on the construction of this masterpiece of naive art.