Through the Fire

A French film about a firefighter and what follows an accident. Franck is a team leader in the Paris fire brigade. He is severely burned during a call one night. He survives, with much of his body damaged. The real subject is recovery. The narrative does not skip the hospital: dressings, skin grafts, pain management and physiotherapy are shown in detail. The second part is his return home; his children have difficulty recognising him, his wife has to become a carer, and their relationship changes. The question that interests the film is not whether he can go back to the job but what identity is: Franck defined himself as a firefighter and that definition no longer holds. The story starts from a real case. Pierre Niney plays Franck and undertook serious physical preparation for it. Anaïs Demoustier plays his wife. Frédéric Tellier directed. A strong example for anyone who likes films about a profession and narratives of recovery. Before you watch, know this: the burn treatment scenes are explicit and long, and the film does not soften them.