Eye For Film >> News >> Michel Hazanavicius to adapt The Search

Michel Hazanavicius to adapt The Search

Exclusive! New project for the director of The Artist.

by Richard Mowe

Bérénice Béjo and Michel Hazanavicius on their Scottish odyssey
Bérénice Béjo and Michel Hazanavicius on their Scottish odyssey Photo: Valentina Bonizzi
The director of The Artist Michel Hazanavicius has revealed in Paris that his next project will again feature his wife Bérénice Béjo (both of whom came to Scotland with his James Bond spoof OSS 117). It will be a loose adaptation of Fred Zinnemann’s film The Search, which was made in 1948 and featured Montgomery Clift. He has transferred the conflict from the Second World War to the Chechen War with the Russians. Béjo plays a resistance fighter and a major Hollywood name will anchor the projection which is due to start filming in the summer.

Hazanavicius, who was in attendance as a special guest at the Unifrance Rendez-vous with French Cinema in Paris, declared himself happy with a project that would allow him to move on from The Artist without any expectations or comparisons.

Hazanavicius and Béjo were lured from France to Scotland five years ago partly thanks to a friendship struck up between Béjo and Scot Phoebe Grigor, daughter of the film-maker Murray Grigor. Hazanavicius had apparently dreamed of making a silent film for 20 years, but had to wait until he had made a name for himself with the OSS 117 spoof and its sequel before anyone gave him a chance.

Share this with others on...

Movies out this week include:

The Devil Wears Prada 2 Fight Club Highlander I've Seen All I Need To See Köln 75 The North Rose Of Nevada Slither Strictly Ballroom Wild Foxes
News

Inviting curiosity Ildikó Enyedi on the value of science, perception, discovery and Silent Friend

Streaming Spotlight: the rites of Spring We shine our Beltane spotlight on films in which the old ways linger

Fighting fit for a debut feature Valéry Carnoy talks toxic masculinity, memory, confidence and Belgian 'soft-power'

Collective power We look ahead at the programme of this year's Folk Film Gathering

Writing hidden messages Arnaud Desplechin on guilt, melodrama, feeling haunted, and Two Pianos

Clever crafting with Idiots Chris Barfoot on his six-camera set up and three-day shoot of his debut feature

More news and features

News
Festival Image

We're bringing you news and reviews from the San Francisco Independent Film Festival and Queer East.



We're looking forward to Cannes.



We've recently brought you coverage of Visions du Réel, Fantaspoa, Overlook, BFI Flare and SXSW, the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, the NY Rendezvous with French Cinema, the Glasgow Film Festival, the Berlinale, Sundance and Palm Springs.



Read our full for more.


Visit our festivals section.

Interact
Competition Picture

Don't forget that you can follow us on YouTube for trailers of festival films and more. You can also find us on Mastodon and Bluesky.


It's a busy time for festivals and here's the latest from the spring events:


Cannes 16 titles added to line-up


Cannes Carla Simón heads short film jury


Cannes Directors' Fortnight selection


Cannes Payal Kapadia heads Critics' Week jury