Silent Rebellion (French: À bras-le-corps, lit. 'head-on') is a 2025 historical drama film co-written and directed by Marie-Elsa Sgualdo, in her feature film debut.
A co-production between Switzerland, France and Belgium, the film had its world premiere at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival.
Contents
Cast
Lila Gueneau as Emma
Grégoire Colin as the pastor
Thomas Doret as the husband
Aurélia Petit as the pastor's wife
Sandrine Blancke as Alice
Cyril Metzger as Louis
Production
The film was produced by Box Productions, with Radio Télévision Suisse, Hélicotronc and Offshore serving as co-producers.
It was mostly shot in Romainmôtier, in the Canton of Vaud; other locations include Goumoëns and Colombier, Neuchâtel.
Release
The film had its world premiere at the 82nd edition of the Venice Film Festival, in the Venice Spotlight sidebar. It was later screened in numerous festivals, including the 22nd Seville European Film Festival, the 37th Palm Springs International Film Festival, the 46th Cairo International Film Festival and the 36th Stockholm International Film Festival.
Reception
Cineuropa's film critic Fabien Lemercier lauded the film, noting how "a narrative finesse goes hand in hand with simple but highly sensitive staging". Nikki Baughan from Screen International also praised it, emphasising Lila Gueneau's "restrained, emotionally intelligent performance" and "undeniably stunning" Swiss settings.
Max Borg from The Film Verdict described it as "a steadily paced journey that is sometimes cinematically conventional but always filled with sincerity and passion, primarily through the strong acting ensemble".
The film received seven nominations at the 2026 Swiss Film Awards, including for Best Film and Best Screenplay, and eventually won the awards for Best Cinematography and Best Editing. It also won Best Narrative Feature and Best Actress for Lila Gueneau at the 26th Fargo Film Festival.