After Plonger in 2017, Mélanie Laurent is back behind the camera, but this time in the United States. In Galveston, with Ben Foster and Elle Fanning as leading role, the French film director signs a violent thriller-road movie that gathers a thug betrayed by his own and a young prostitute on her own. What we thought of Mélanie Laurent in American version:
A touching story
Inspired from the novel by Nic Pizzolatto, the creator of the series True Détective, the intrigue of Galveston mingles violence, suspense, and tenderness. When Roy (Ben Foster), a small gangster from Nouvelle Orléans, finds himself in an ambush organized by his boss, the comes upon a young scared woman, Rocky (Elle Fanning), whom he takes under his wing to escape. After having saved his kid sister from the claws of a violent father, Rocky confides in Roy. A pretty story occurs between the three characters who tame each other somewhat until they reach the town of Galveston, where they stop for a few days in a Motel. The evolution of the relationship is rather successful, but unfortunately the film has some long parts.
Unequal acting
If Ben Foster is impeccable in the role of a gangster seeking vengeance, but protector with the young woman and the little girl, the interpretation by Elle Fanning as a young 19-year-old prostitute hurt by life is not very convincing: her character has lived through terrible dramas, but the actress overdoes her melo-dramatic, and is not very natural.
Verdict
With this film, we prefer Mélanie Laurent as an actress rather than a film director. It has all the ingredients of a good, but the plot just does not work out, notably because of scenes that are much too long (even useless), and a few slightly overdone interpretations.
