# Pacifiction

Pacifiction (French: Pacifiction – Tourment sur les îles) is a 2022 thriller drama film written and directed by Albert Serra, and starring Benoît Magimel. The film premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or. The film title is a portmanteau of the words Pacific and fiction.

## Plot

"On the French Polynesian island of Tahiti, the High Commissioner of the Republic and French government official De Roller is a calculating man with flawless manners. His somewhat broad perception of his role brings him to navigate the high-end 'establishment' as well as shady venues where he mingles with the locals. A persistent rumour also has been going around: The sighting of a submarine with a ghostly presence could herald the return of French nuclear testing."

## Cast

* Benoît Magimel as High Commissioner De Roller
* Pahoa Mahagafanau as Shannah
* Marc Susini as l'amiral
* Matahi Pambrun as Matahi
* Alexandre Mello as le Portugais
* Sergi López as Morton
* Montse Triola as Francesca
* Michael Vautor as le capitaine
* Cécile Guilbert as Romane Attia
* Lluís Serrat as Lois
* Mike Landscape as M. Mike
* Cyrus Arai as Cyrus
* Mareva Wong as la secrétaire
* Baptiste Pinteaux as Olivier

## Release

The film screened at the 75th Cannes Film Festival on 26 May 2022. Distributed by Elastica, it was released theatrically in Spain on 2 September 2022. It was released by Les Films du Losange in France on 9 November 2022.

## Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 87% based on 70 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The website's consensus reads, "Narratively sparse and visually vast, Pacifiction is a tsunami of a political thriller that philosophically rewards those willing to weather it." According to Metacritic, which assigned a weighted average score of 75 out of 100 based on 18 critics, the film received "generally favorable reviews".
Reviewing the film following its Cannes premiere, Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian wrote that he was "captivated by the film and its stealthy evocation of pure evil." Christian Blauvelt of IndieWire wrote, "Pacifiction is not a vicarious experience of luxury; it is an experience of life. Set to its own tidal rhythm, it is one of the most beautiful and rigorously introspective movies of this or any year." The Hollywood Reporter's Leslie Felperin called it "Punishingly slow, though not uninteresting." Guy Lodge of Variety wrote, "Provided they stick with the film's luxuriantly gradual pacing... there are rewards here even for more bemused viewers caught in its tide." Nando Salvá of Cinemanía rated the film 4½ out of 5 stars, underscoring the film to be "Romantic. Seductive. Hypnotic. Overwhelming" as a verdict.

### Top ten lists

The film appeared on some critics' top-ten lists of the best films of 2022:
* 1st — Cahiers du Cinéma (staff consensus)
* 1st — ScreenDaily (Jonathan Romney)
* 5th — Artforum (James Quandt)
It also appeared on a number of critics' top-ten lists of the best European films of 2022:
* 1st — Cineuropa (David González)
* 1st — Cineuropa (David Katz)
* 1st — Cineuropa (Alfonso Rivera)
* 2nd — Cineuropa (Martin Kudlac)
* 2nd — Cineuropa (Fabien Lemercier)
* 3rd — Cineuropa (Júlia Olmo)
* 3rd — Cineuropa (Cristóbal Soage)
* 9th — Cineuropa (Vladan Petkovic)

## Accolades

| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
| 2022 | Louis Delluc Prize | Best Film of the Year | Best Film of the Year | Won |
| 2023 | 28th Lumières Awards | Best Film | Best Film | Nominated |
| 2023 | 28th Lumières Awards | Best Director | Albert Serra | Won |
| 2023 | 28th Lumières Awards | Best Actor | Benoît Magimel | Won |
| 2023 | 28th Lumières Awards | Best Cinematography | Artur Tort | Won |
| 2023 | 28th Lumières Awards | Best Music | Marc Verdaguer | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Non-Catalan Language Film | Best Non-Catalan Language Film | Won |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Director | Albert Serra | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Actor | Benoît Magimel | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Original Screenplay | Albert Serra | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Cinematography | Artur Tort | Won |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Editing | Albert Serra, Artur Tort, Ariadna Ribas | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Production Supervision | Clàudia Robert | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Art Direction | Sebastian Vogler | Won |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Costume Design | Práxedes de Villalonga | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Makeup and Hairstyles | Aurélie Vigouroux, Maryline Montibert | Nominated |
| 2023 | 15th Gaudí Awards | Best Original Score | Marc Verdaguer, Joe Robinson | Nominated |
| 2023 | 10th Feroz Awards | Arrebato Award (Fiction) | Arrebato Award (Fiction) | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Film | Best Film | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Director | Albert Serra | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Actor | Benoît Magimel | Won |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Cinematography | Artur Tort | Won |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Original Music | Marc Verdaguer, Joe Robinson | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Costume Design | Praxedes de Vilallonga | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Production Design | Sebastian Vogler | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Sound | Jordi Ribas, Benjamin Laurent, Bruno Tarriere | Nominated |
| 2023 | 48th César Awards | Best Visual Effects | Marco del Bianco | Nominated |