We are at a time when, due to the digital orientation of our lives, it is becoming increasingly difficult to detect the transparency of the dark side of a two-faced person. This affected Austrian writer-director Marie Kreutzer and the crew of her 2023 feminist film Al Sadr when actor Florian Taichtmeister was convicted of possession of child pornography, which no one was at all aware of until he was convicted. The experience prompted Kreutzer to examine this aspect of being a public figure dealing with the account of a relative who was found to have committed an unfortunate crime. Hell, or in the case of the disturbing, patient, and disappointing family drama Gentle Monster — one of the many Cannes acquisition titles Netflix screened at TIFF 2026 — how come this blast of revelation comes to a wife when her unsuspecting partner turns out to be a child predator.

The film follows Lucie (Léa Seydoux), a famous experimental musician who has shaped her life around her less successful German director husband, Philipp (Laurence Robb), and their child, Johnny (Malu Blanchett). She turns their city life upside down and moves to the Bavarian countryside after Philipp experiences severe creative burnout. Life is good and fun. Marital life is alive and well. One day, the Munich Criminal Investigation Department (CID) raided their home, with a warrant to confiscate all of Philipp’s computers. At the base, Detective Elsa (Gila Haas) informs Lucy that her man has been on sex sites and participating in dark web forums, all of which involve sexual abuse of children. To make matters worse, they suspected he was luring them as well.

Shocked, distraught, devastated, and everything in between, Lucy tries to navigate herself and her relationship. How does one handle this revelation, not only having to tell others as a public figure but also having a fractured belief system when no red flags came with it at all? Meanwhile, in her spare time, Elsa must put up with her perverted, wheelchair-bound father (Sylvester Grothe) with whom she lives, whose constant sexual advances toward their live-in nurse are worrying.

Morsi performance by Léa Seydoux

Gentle Monster is centered primarily on Léa Seydoux’s lively, energetic performance, reminding audiences of her immense potential. She conveys Lucy’s inner wave of emotions – crossing extreme confusion, denial, stress, paranoia, and rage – with natural presentation. Kreutzer’s gentle slice-of-life style allows Seydoux to fully immerse himself in the character and connect with him as well. While you feel the flourishing and worrying pain as you do in every detail.

Although one might think it’s easy to black and white and say “Girl, leave him” or “Girl, kill him,” Kreutzer addresses the reality of the gray area in love. It is fascinating in how it explains psychological challenges through a local female lens. The inclusion of other female characters such as her dynamic musician mother Eloise (Catherine Deneuve) attempts to offer her advice as an avatar. Small details that weave the cycle of women having to carry generationally aggregate information, such as Eloise advising her daughter to vomit, an urgent anxiety response because she has not yet taken in this information, add great weight to it.

Image credit: Netflix

Where the film falters

However, the film stops every time it changes its perspective to Elsa and her second plot with her father. When her paths cross with Lucy, it makes for some of the strongest scenes in the film, and Haase does well in the role as well. But her character becomes uninteresting when she is isolated. The subplot deals with the generational cycle of male sexual assault against the modern era in this paradox, but it doesn’t have as much fun as you might think. If anything, it disrupts the pace of the film. It is completely unnecessary and takes a long running time of about 2 hours. Lucy A’s plot is enough to sustain itself at least on the plot front.

On the other hand, Kreutzer doesn’t extract much of the substance. It has a hook but doesn’t impress you beyond Seydoux and the performances of the supporting cast. However, it takes off from its premise in the most obvious direction, with a distracting and often heavy-handed subplot, leaving little to say outside of the obvious “hey, men are perverted freaks.” Point blank, that’s the statement.

This same feeling applies to her musical choices in the performance scenes where Lucy plays piano, harmonium, and harp, such as Charles and Eddie’s “Would I Lie to You?” Deconstructing words and combinations. The directness leaves a lot of potential to be desired. It was certainly a pleasant surprise to learn that Sidhu had acquired a set of pipes. I’ve been listening to her cover of Coldplay’s “Yellow” on Spotify (Netflix, please).

Judgment

However, Marie Kreutzer’s Gentle Monster is Léa Seydoux’s show. It’s thoughtful in its prose but doesn’t have much to offer beyond its performance, which is a great shame because a movie about this subject in 2026 should be little more than a hollow slice of your contemplative life. Maybe a decade ago it would have seemed more refreshing, not taking away from the real experience that inspired the meat of the film, but it should have had just as much great driving as Seydoux’s portrayal.

Watch the cute monster if you like:

• Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
• Al Saddār (2022)
• Tar (2022)
• The Story (2018)