The year is 1792, in the midst of the French Revolution, but far from the fury and furore of Paris. The monk Gabriel lives with his fellow monks in a convent near the Italian border. The quietude and routine of the clergy is disrupted by the arrival of soldiers and the young Marianne. In sequences of great beauty and sensuality, amid a landscape of olive trees, Gabriel discovers his identity. A violent désir de bonheur raises timeless questions such as breaking with established norms and the search for fulfilment. It speaks to us of the past and the present, of the Revolution and revolutions, of the characters, but also of ourselves. Set to the rhythm of Patti Smith and the punk music of the 1960s and 1970s. The film was presented in the ACID section of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Text written by the Young Programmers Moving Cinema at la Filmoteca de Catalunya.