Igor Manger Noisettes
2025 · 2m · France
Directed by Sisi Mbemba
Genres: comedy, fantasy, romance
Tones: darkly comic, tender, whimsical
Betty and Benny, two souls seeking connection, finally meet after exchanging messages online — but an unforeseen event upends their first date when Betty's unmastered secret gift turns dinner into an unforgettable experience.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
A rom-com where the girl's secret power sabotages the date instead of saving it—subversive enough, but the whimsy lands a little too safely, and I wanted the film to commit harder to the chaos and less to the inevitable tenderness.
Mbemba's tonal balance—threading darkly comic with genuine romance in two minutes—shows real formal control, though the premise sits comfortably within fantasy-romance lineage rather than interrogating it.
That moment when Betty's power activates mid-dinner and neither character breaks character or cuts away—the commitment to playing it sincere while everything dissolves around them is the exact small choice that transforms a high-concept gimmick into something that actually *feels*.
Reviews
Sous le coup d'un montage efficace et d'une plume futée, ce petit bonbon pour les yeux nous décroche aisément des rires. On pardonne au film ses facilités de mise en scène, pour avoir réussi un pari pourtant malaisé à relever pour tout cinéaste débutant : faire tenir debout une proposition originale et pleine de personnalité.
Le ton est volontiers comique, l'interprétation habile et la réalisation originale.