Philippe Besson

Birth : 1967-01-29, Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire, Charente, France

History

Philippe Besson (born 29 January 1967 in Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire, Charente) is a French writer. In 1999, Besson, a law graduate, was inspired to write his first novel, En l'absence des hommes while reading of accounts of ex-servicemen during the First World War. The novel, with its daring inclusion of Marcel Proust as a central character, won the Prix Emmanuel Roblès. Besson's second novel, Son Frère was shortlisted for the Prix Femina, and adapted for cinema by Patrice Chéreau in 2003. The film was well received and won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.

Movies

Lie with Me
Novel
Upon agreeing to be the brand ambassador for a famous cognac celebrating their bicentennial, novelist Stéphane Belcourt returns to his hometown for the first time in many years. Once there, he meets his first love’s son, Lucas. Memories come rushing back to him: irrepressible attraction, bodies becoming one in the heat of desire, a passion that can never be revealed… His first love’s name was Thomas. They were 17.
Entre vents et marées
Story
In Brittany, a notary is killed with shots to the head. His wife Joséphine is a suspect. Her husband had just sold part of their property to two shady real estate developers who wanted to transform the little fishing village into an ultra-modern marina for wealthy clients.
The Lanzac Clan
Writer
A war of inheritance in the Lanzac family, a rich industrial family from Bordeaux, against a backdrop of family secrets and the unsaid. Elisabeth Lanzac authoritatively leads an important industrial group specializing in wood. Her eldest son, Nicolas, is her named successor, but he dies in a road accident. When the will is read, the family is stunned to learn that he has left his share to Julien, his secret son...
La solitude du pouvoir
Writer
Pierre Vasseur is the French president. He has a busy schedule: resolving political crises, abating popular anger, tolerating sarcastic journalists, and parrying opposition attacks-not to mention dealing with the tense relationship he has with his daughter.
Second Chances
Writer
Rasputin
Writer
A group of Russian noblemen want to maintain the monarchy and plan to kill Rasputin.
A Bad Encounter
Screenplay
Caché
TV Guest
A married couple is terrorized by a series of videotapes planted on their front porch.
His Brother
Novel
Thomas has been estranged from his brother Luc for several years, due in part to his difficulties in dealing with Luc's homosexuality. But when Thomas is diagnosed with a rare blood disease, which is difficult to treat and impossible to cure, he decides he wants to bring Luc back into his life. The brothers soon become inseparable, and their new relationship begins to alienate their significant others.
I Can't Sleep
Police Officer at Accident
In 1980s Paris, a series of murders captures public attention. Meanwhile, the gorgeous Daiga moves from Lithuania to Paris, immigrant musician Théo struggles to raise his young son, and Théo's brother, a gay transvestite named Camille, sings and dances in a cabaret for a living. All three grapple with isolation and the problems of modern living, but one of them could be so desperately alienated that they have a hand in the serial murders.
The Sentinel
A medical intern finds himself drawn into a world of international intrigue after discovering a shrunken human head in his luggage.
L'île aux oiseaux
On a stormy night, off the coast of the Arcachon basin, a small sailboat named "Julie" disappears with a young girl of the same name on board. What really happened? The mystery is all the thicker because a month later, her husband met the same sad end. A year later, on the anniversary of Julie's disappearance, a commemorative meal is organized by the young woman's main relations. Many things from the past will then resurface.
Life Is a Bed of Roses
In this whimsical fable, Resnais deftly interweaves three story lines: the creation of an early-20th-century utopia; romantic high jinks at a school conference; and a fantasy sparked by F/X pioneer Georges Méliès.