The deadline for submissions for the International Film Oscar is less than two months away. While some nations’ selections have been announced (South Korea selecting “Decision to Leave“) or are obvious (“Close” for Belgium), others are very up in the air. One major player with a lot to contemplate is France. And a film they might feel compelled to select is “Athena,” a Netflix release.
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Directed by Romain Gavras (“The World is Yours”), “Athena” centers on Abden (Dali Benssalah), a man who returns home to the Paris suburbs after the unexpected death of his youngest sibling. He attempts to de-escalate a growingly tense situation with the authorities that his youngest remaining brother (Sami Slimane) and his oldest brother (Ouassini Embarek) seem intent on inflaming. The film will debut at the 2022 Venice Film Festival later this month and launch on Netflix in September. Netflix has released a new trailer for the drama that you can find embedded on this page.
In a surprise, France effectively blew up its long-running Oscar submitting committee after 12 years of disappointment. Since 2010, only two French films have been nominated in the International Film category, and one of them, “Les Miserables,” just happens to have been written by Ladj Ly, who co-wrote and produced “Athena.” With no French film setting la Croisette on fire this past May, there is an opening for “Athena” to carry the French flag into the Oscar race. Before this year, this would have been unheard of based on the fact Netflix does not release its films commercially in French theaters. In fact, the streamer’s films are still not allowed in competition at Cannes, a festival that has had a massive influence on the nation’s International Film submission (Palme d’Or winner “Titane” was selected last year). But with Cannes delegate general Thierry Frémaux no longer part of the selection process, and directors Jaques Audiard and Michel Gondry now part of the committee, “Athena” may end up an Oscar surprise. Maybe.
“Athena” will debut on Netflix on September 23.

AthenaDali BenssalahLadj LyRomain GavrasVenice 2022About The Author