Celestial Clockwork (film)

Celestial Clockwork
Theatrical release poster
FrenchMécaniques célestes
Directed byFina Torres
Written byFina Torres
Starring
CinematographyRicardo Aronovich
Edited by
  • Christiane Lack
  • Catherine Trouillet
Music by
  • Alma Rosa Castellanos
  • François Farrugia
  • Michel Musseau
Production
companies
  • Miralta Films
  • Mistral Films
  • Pandorados C.A.
  • Paradise Films
  • I.N.G.
  • Club d'Investissement Média
  • Bastille Films
Distributed byAFMD (France)
Release date
  • 17 May 1995 (1995-05-17) (France)
Running time
85 minutes[1]
Countries
  • France
  • Venezuela
  • Belgium
  • Spain
Languages
  • French
  • Italian
  • Spanish
  • English

Celestial Clockwork (French: Mécaniques célestes) is a 1995 comedy-drama co-produced between France, Venezuela, Belgium and Spain directed by Fina Torres and starring mainly Ariadna Gil.[2]

Plot

Ana, a young singer from Caracas who is about to get married, runs away to Paris. The stars are both good and bad for her: at the same time she meets a friendly group of Latinos and the upstart and unsettling video artist Céleste.[2]

Like the tale of Cinderella, the great impresario Italo Medici, portrayed by Lluis Homar, is casting for a film of Rossini's Cinderella, is looking for unknown talent, and only has an audio cassette of the voice of Ana (Spanish actress Ariadna Gil). The famous man in the local community is like a prince looking for the future princess, but with only an audio cassette instead of a glass slipper. However, this film called "Celestial Clockwork" has video artist Céleste, a wicked stepmotherlike character who is called La Pirata (French actress Arielle Dombasle), who also dreams of being cast for the role and tries to sabotage Ana.[3]

Cast

  • Ariadna Gil as Ana
    • Elsa Maurus as Ana (singing voice)
  • Arielle Dombasle as Céleste
  • Evelyne Didi as Alcanie
  • Lluís Homar as Italo Medici
  • Frédéric Longbois as Armand
  • Hildegarde García Madriz as Toutou
  • Michel Debrane as Grigorief
  • Olivier Granier as Claude
  • Alma Rosa Castellanos as Lucila
  • Philippe Beautier as Hervé
  • Pedro De Llano as Marlano
  • Chantal Aimée as Tina
  • Dominique Abel as Gaby

Production

The film was a French-Venezuelan-Belgian-Spanish co-production shot in Paris, Caracas, Clarines and Lisbon.[4]

Release

The film was theatrically released in France on 17 May 1995.[5][1]

Film critic review

Film critic Roger Ebert wrote:[3]

Much of the movie's charm comes from the glow and charisma of Ariadna Gil, who has a beautiful smile–and just as well since she smiles so much during the movie.

Awards

Year Festival Award
1995 Namur International Francophone Film Festival Prize of the public of the city of Namur to Fina Torres.
1996 Outfest (Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Film Festival) Grand Jury Prize for the best story for Mécaniques célestes.

References

  1. 1 2 Cinéma (in French). Fédération français des ciné-clubs. 1995. p. 11. Retrieved 25 March 2026.
  2. 1 2 "Mécaniques célestes de Fina Torres (1994)". UniFrance (in French). Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Celestial Clockwork movie review review:". www.rogerebert.com. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
  4. ↑ Mécaniques célestes (Motion picture). France. 1995. End credits.
  5. ↑ Cahiers du cinéma (in French). Éditions de l'Étoile. 1995. p. 114. Retrieved 25 March 2026.
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