Exuvia (2022)

Hunter is a young boy bonds with his no nonsense nanny Melina.

The heart of the film, and the reason you need to see this film, is the relationship between young Hunter played by Rémi-Gaël Panon and his nanny Melina played by Katherine Alpen. The relationship, which clicks from the first frame, is a thing of beauty. Forget the plot as such, you just will want to watch these characters be together. The relationship is finely crafted and feels absolutely real. It gives us the sense that the pair was bonding long before the cameras were rolling. There is an ease between them that is extremely rare. It’s the sort of thing you generally only find between real life friends who know each other so well that they are somewhere beyond finishing their sentences.

The real surprise here is Rémi-Gaël Panon who is Oscar worthy in his performance. There is a simplicity to him that is stunning. He is perfectly cast and interacts with everyone as if he were a pro many years older. I will be curious where he will be in five or ten years down the road.

As good as the relationship is between Panon and Alpen is, it would have been for naught director Anthony Harrison’s script not been as good as it is. To be certain some of the plot turns feel more like they are there just to drive things forward, Harrison hits it out of the park with his finely crafted relationships and beautiful dialog. (if you like what you see here and haven’t seen his JOE FINDS GRACE do track it down)

This is a super film. This is exactly the sort of treat that Unseen Films was set up to highlight.

Recommended.