The Electric Kiss

Love, illusions, and passion in the Tesla era, in the opening film of the latest Cannes Film Festival.

2026, Pierre Salvadori

France—Belgium
122 minutes, French with Russian subtitles

Starring: Pio Marmaï, Anaïs Demoustier, Gilles Lellouche, Vimala Pons

1920s Paris. At a fair, visitors are drawn to an attraction called “The Electric Venus,” in which staged passion is accompanied by a very real electric shock. Venus is impersonated by Suzanne, and widowed artist Antoine Balestro mistakes her for a genuine medium. He is seeking contact with his late wife, and Suzanne plays along with the grieving soul.

Still from The Electric Kiss, 2026

Pierre Salvadori tackles this emotional terrain with remarkable directorial finesse and a keen eye for detail, beneath the seemingly effortless surface of a theatrical comedy that gives its cast plenty to relish and leaves the audience smiling.

—Fabien Lemercier, Cineuropa

The plot of this charming film consists of a series of hoaxes and innuendo, playfully recreating the realities of a century ago. Pierre Salvadori does not seek to build up drama and makes genuinely crowd-pleasing cinema.