Sometimes, horrible things happen right under our noses. And sometimes, we just do not want to see things as they are, particularly when it comes to the people we love. Gentle Monster, the new film from Austrian writer-director Marie Kreutzer (Austria’s Oscar submission and historical drama Corsage), which world premieres in the competition program of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival on Friday, explores such themes as love, trust, loyalty and narratives, both factual and fictional, in ways that will get under your skin.
Lucy and Elsa have built their lives around men who may have dark sides lurking. Pianist Lucy, played by French star Léa Seydoux, with Catherine Deneuve as her mother, loves her husband Philip (Laurence Rupp) so much that she agreed to move to the countryside with him and their son Johnny after Philip’s burnout. This affects her professional life, but a bigger worry emerges from the shadows. In an early morning police visit, investigators from the sexualized violence against children, child and youth pornography unit accuse Philip of being active in online chat forums where men share footage of kids. Is he a pedophile? Did he look to make a quick but illegal buck? Or is there another explanation? Desperate to protect Johnny, Lucy feels trapped between the man she loves and the horror of what he may have done.
