Spoiler Warning: TitaneJulia Ducournau's Titane might be the most original film of 2021. In only her second feature, Ducournau took home the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, and rightfully so. The film centers around Alexia (Agathe Rousselle), who, after having survived a brutal car crash in her youth, had a titanium plate placed in her head. A now grown-up Alexia works as a showgirl at car shows, inspiring a fan base of more than eager men. Little do these men know, Alexia is a serial killer, using a hairpin to take the lives of her victims.

After Alexia kills her lover, Justine (Garance Marillier), she tries to kill all the witnesses in the home but ends up missing one. Now on the verge of getting caught and nowhere to go, she notices a missing person sign of a child named Adrien, along with the photo of how old Adrien would look today. At this point, the film takes a turn as Alexia changes her appearance to resemble Adrien, leading to the child's father, Vincent (Vincent Lindon), taking her in.

While on the surface, Titane is body horror, there's also a tender side to it, with a commentary on family that transcends the violence of the world Ducournau crafts. One finds themselves shedding more tears by the end of the film than shivering in fear. What comes of this connection between Vincent and Alexia becomes nothing short of beautiful, showcasing the importance of love and the impact of loss. Titane certainly deserved a nod for Best International Feature Film, if not Best Picture. The world of cinema needs films like Titane, giving audiences narratives different from any we've ever seen before to showcase themes common to us all.

An Unusual Conception

Agathe Rousselle as Alexia in Titane
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The most shocking part of Titane has to do with a rather unusual conception. After killing one of her pushy male fans with her hairpin, Alexia goes to shower off the blood. As she showers, she hears a banging from the door outside. She walks to the door and opens it to reveal the car she'd been performing against. Alexia hops in, and the car begins bouncing up and down. The camera takes the audience inside the car to reveal Alexia holding onto the seatbelt straps as the vehicle seems to be intimate with her. The following morning, Alexia wakes up with a belly ache and later discovers that she's pregnant and secreting motor oil.

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Going back to the start of the film, Alexia hums engine noises in the backseat of her father's car as they go for a drive. He turns up the car's stereo as her noises intensify. She begins kicking against the back of his seat and removes her seatbelt in protest. Her father reaches around to lash out at her, resulting in a violent car crash. After Alexia receives her titanium implant as a child, she walks to the same car they crashed in and gives it a hug and a kiss. For Alexia, she felt no love or attention from her parents, but she did from her family car, in a way becoming one with it by getting the implant. She was more a child of the car than her apathetic parents. Alexia can't connect with people, only cars and the metal that serves as theirs and her foundation.

A Major Transformation

Agathe Rousselle as Alexia in Titane
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Vincent receives news that his son, Adrien, has been found, heading to the local police station to identify him. Upon arrival, Vincent is offered a DNA test but rejects it angrily. He nods his head in confirmation when laying eyes on "Adrien." Vincent takes Alexia to her new home, which turns out to be a fire station where Vincent is the captain. He sets her up in Adrien's old room, which is very much in the same shape it was left. Vincent refuses any suggestion that Adrien is an imposter tells his fellow firefighters to never say anything about his son. At first, Alexia tries to escape but eventually comes back out of fear of being caught. She goes to kill Vincent but finds him on the floor, nodding off from his combination of prescription drugs, wine, and steroids. She can't bring herself to do it and calls him "papa" for the first time as she jiggles his shoulders to wake him. Vincent is a broken man, living in the past. He still believes his long-lost son was out there and takes steroids to maintain a physique that is long gone. Vincent's ex-wife (Myriem Akheddiou) arrives to see Adrien but discovers she's a woman while walking in on her changing. She tells Alexia that she won't reveal this to Vincent as long as she takes care of him. He deserves to have this delusion.

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Later, Vincent seems to know that Alexia isn't Adrien. Vincent confesses to Alexia he doesn't care who she is. To him, she is his son, and he'll love them no matter what. As Alexia's body is falling apart and the birth of her bionic child is fast approaching, she finds a home. Her anger and rage are seemingly gone, as she has the father she never had.

Finding a Family

Agathe Rousselle as Alexia in Titane
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Love isn't based on blood. Vincent needed someone in his life, no matter who they were, as he never recovered from the loss of Adrien. Without Alexia, he would have likely harmed himself. Without Vincent, Alexia would have kept hate in her heart without ever knowing the feeling of being loved or wanted. Vincent gifts her with this love, and Alexia gifts Vincent with a son and a second chance.

In the end, Titane shocks and horrifies the viewer with much of its disturbing imagery. However, it also warms the heart of the audience by showing that acceptance and love can change a person. If any film deserved an Oscar nomination, it's Titane, as very few films have the power to shake audiences to the core and illustrate how love and acceptance can change a life for good, even for the most violent and broken of people.