The second feature film by Gessica Généus, after FREDA (2021), was seen by part of the press as a breath of fresh air at the Cannes Film Festival. Screened out of competition in the Cannes Première section, Marie Madeleine won over most critics, both in France and internationally.
The encounter between Marie Madeleine, a prostitute from Jacmel in Haiti, and the evangelist Joseph is compelling. Part of the French press praised both the film’s visual power and its singularity. Les Cahiers du cinéma led the way: “The opening shots are already dazzling,” seeing in the film “one of the most beautiful revelations of Cannes 2026.” A “dreamed-of countershot to a Croisette plagued by the luxury of private beaches.”
For its part, Libération used a striking headline, “Gessica Généus’s great radiant sin,” and stated bluntly: “The film is astonishing.” L’Humanité was just as enthusiastic, calling it a “must-see film” of the festival.
“An uplifting hymn to freedom”
Franceinfo stresses the film’s political significance, describing it as “a radical film … about the contradictions shaking Haiti.” The news channel sees it as “a political firebrand” driven by “great artistic ambition.” The newspaper La Marseillaise, for its part, highlights the “stunning beauty” of “this Haitian film that escapes all conventional narrative.”
France 24 describes it as “a powerful film … between chaos, faith, and light,” while the website À voir à lire evokes “a sunlit hymn to freedom” at the heart of “an unceasing swirl of colors, music, and lights.” The cultural outlet calls Marie Madeleine an “unclassifiable film” that “invites joy, surrender, and a form of optimism.” According to it, “the viewer is charmed by this unfolding of marvels and landscapes.”
The website Angle de vue also sees it as “a beautiful ode to freedom.” Cult News highlights “the risky but successful choice of confronting evangelism with love and sexuality,” praising an unexpected “delicacy” in this “moving drama.”
An enthusiastic international reception
Foreign press confirms this warm reception and highlights Gessica Généus’s artistic maturity. Screen Daily praises “a sensual narrative” and a second feature film “of great mastery,” “imbued with a new freshness and emotion.”
Old Magazine highlights “great formal freedom,” while Gazettely says that Gessica Généus is “one of the most important new voices in cinema.”
American critic and blogger Robert Ebert, for his part, underscores the film’s sensory power: “Gessica Généus develops ecstatic sequences that stay with the viewer, like a queer parade whose festivities turn into a swirling celebration.” He adds: “Marie Madeleine offers such striking images that it is easy to have unwavering faith in its ambitions.”
Finally, Film Fest Report describes it as “a vibrant work that transforms, grows in force, and embraces you.”
