François Ozon Takes on the Church with 'By the Grace of God'

Based on factual accounts and events, Fran�ois Ozon's daring new film "By the Grace of God" takes on the Catholic sex abuse scandal by chronicling the true story of a trio of survivors from Lyon, France, who decided to expose the Church's horrific code of silence that allowed the priest that abused them to continue to do the same to others years later. The three adults - Alexandre (Melvin Poupaud), Fran�ois (Denis Menochet), and Emmanuel (Swann Arlaud) - decide they must do what is necessary to expose those who knew and did nothing, all the way up to the Cardinal.

Ozon's new film is like nothing he's ever done before – although the same can be said for much of his work. The one thing that unifies them is their singularity. With "By the Grace of God," Ozon has made his most powerful and best film to date, going full throttle to expose what so many wanted concealed in a country that has been slow to respond to the ever-growing scandal.

Not surprisingly, the film rattled the Catholic church, specifically Father Bernard Preynat, who led a legal effort to block the release of the film in France last February. The French courts ruled otherwise, and the film was released to much acclaim and a strong box office. At the same time that the court case was ruled upon, the film was awarded the Silver Bear grand jury prize at the 2019 Berlinale Film Festival. In July, an ecclesiastical tribunal of the Archdiocese of Lyon found Preynat guilty of criminal acts of a sexual character on minors younger than 16, and applied its maximum penalty by defrocking him.

The out filmmaker has portrayed honest and varied representations of sexuality in his movies before it became vogue. He's also worked with many of the most exciting female actors in cinema, including Charlotte Rampling, Jacqueline Bisset, and Jeanne Moreau. And then there is the cast of his dark comedy musical, "8 Women," from 2002, which includes legends Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Huppert, and Fanny Ardant.

EDGE sat down with the director to discuss his timely new work.

Moved by Testimonies

EDGE: How much did you know about the Catholic sex abuse scandal going into making the film?

Fran�ois Ozon: I had heard of some things on television, but I didn't know the heart of the story. I discovered the testimonies on the internet... and I was very moved, so I decided to meet the survivors, and they told me the whole story and I made a kind of investigation with them... I wanted to show that the abused child (is) a ticking time bomb that damages all the family. It was really the subject of my film. To show the parents who feel guilty. The brothers, sisters who feel jealous. The children who are disturbed by what happened to their father. All these things I did not know, actually. I discovered them during the investigation.

EDGE: And you were originally considering making it a documentary?

Fran�ois Ozon: Because when I met the victims, they were so strong, so powerful and interesting persons, I wanted to film them. But they didn't want any more – they had made so many interviews on television, for magazines, for newspapers. And I think they told me all their secrets because I was a fiction director. And in a certain way, they were waiting for me to make a French "Spotlight," because the film was just released in France and it was very strong for them... So they were waiting for me to make a kind of fiction that could help their fight. And that's what I've done.

A Relay Race

EDGE: "By the Grace of God" is arguably more powerful than "Spotlight," because the focus is on the survivors.

Fran�ois Ozon: Yes. I think there is a complimentary [existence] with the two films. "Spotlight" is more about the fight of the journalists trying to discover the truth... In my film, it's really about the survivors and their fight. And they use the media, they use the journalists to change things. So it's a different point of view.

EDGE: How did you take all these stories and whittle them into a manageable screenplay?

Fran�ois Ozon: [At] first it was a big mess. But, actually, the reality was very strong, and maybe the power of the reality was stronger than the fiction. I discovered so many things I couldn't have imagined as a scriptwriter. For example, when I discovered that the women were abused, too. The wives. It was a big shock... I had so much material, so I decided to follow the chronology of history. The fact that first Alexandre was alone fighting within the institution... trusting Barbarin (the Cardinal). And he realized, after two years, that things won't change... And the investigator then discovered the letters of the parents of Fran�ois, and then Fran�ois continues the fight... Then Emmanuel. So there is a relay race between these three characters.

Gay Victims?

EDGE: We all know sex abuse survivors are gay, straight – all sexual orientations. But you focused on three heterosexuals...

Fran�ois Ozon: But I was looking for a gay character, but they told me that many gays commit suicide because it's very difficult for them to accept that they are gay and they were raped by men. They make a link, which is stupid because it has nothing to do with each other. So very often in the case of Lyon, a very Catholic, conservative city, it was difficult to come out as gay and to speak out that they were raped, too. So, very often, there is a kind of fight inside their heads, and many of them are dead. Of course, I was looking for a gay character, but I didn't find any.

EDGE: Did you feel any pressure from the church?

Fran�ois Ozon: I didn't have pressure because I shot the film secretly. I didn't give the real title. We decided to say it was a film about friendship between three men. And the shooting title was "Alexandre," because if we would have said, "By the Grace of God," everyone would have known it was about the affair in Lyon with Cardinal Barbarin. So we shot secretly, and decided to shoot the scenes inside the church in Belgium. Not in France. So we were totally free to make the film as we wanted. The problems arose after, when the title and trailer of the film were discovered.

Actions Don't Follow

EDGE: Interesting. So there was no problem up until that point.

Fran�ois Ozon: No, but we had trials before the release. The church tried to stop the release of the film. But the 'Justice' considered that the film was a public service and the freedom of expression, in this case, was more important than the presumption of innocence. [There was] a lot of publicity. But we were afraid... because we were not sure if the film would be released or not.

EDGE: How was it received in France?

Fran�ois Ozon: The film was very well received, very supported by the press and by the Catholics, too, because... they felt the film was respectful to the faith. It's an attack against the institution, but not against the Catholic faith.

EDGE: Do you think the church will ever change its ways?

Fran�ois Ozon: It has changed. After the release of the film... the priest was defrocked, which is a big victory for the survivors, and Cardinal Barbarin was condemned. And he went to the Vatican to give his resignation to Pope Francis, who refused it! So it was again a big scandal, because the words of Pope Francis was always very strong against pedophilia. He said zero tolerance for pedophilia. But his actions didn't follow. So it's always the same problem.

Narrative Complexity

EDGE: Do you feel your process as a director has evolved over the years?

Fran�ois Ozon: I had a different responsibility in the case of this film because they're real persons and I wanted to be respectful with their fight and with the honesty of their work... But I didn't want to make a black or white film. It's complex. Even with the priest. There is a humanity in each character. It was important to show the complexity of all the characters.

EDGE: Looking back at "8 Women," you worked with some of the best female actors. What was it like and what did you take away from it?

Fran�ois Ozon: It's like old memories... It was a great experience. I learned a lot. I understood, on this film, that there is no one way of directing. You have to adapt each time to each actress or actor. You don't direct Isabelle Huppert like you direct Catherine Deneuve or Fanny Ardant. Each time there are different needs from the actor, so you have to adapt yourself. So it was very difficult for me, because I had eight stars in front of me, so I had to adapt myself to each - but it was a good lesson.

EDGE: That film has a very gay sensibility.

Fran�ois Ozon: It was the pleasure of playing with dolls. Talking dolls. And dolls that are not in the slightest way passive. Very active!

"By the Grace of God" is in limited release in the United States. To find if it is playing near you, visit the film's website.

Watch the trailer to "By the Grace of God":