Direction: Stéphane Demoustier
Country: France
Inspired by true events that took place between 1983 and 1987, The Great Arch chronicles a pivotal and turbulent chapter in the life of Danish architect Johan Otto von Spreckelsen, compellingly portrayed by Claes Bang (The Square, 2017; The Northman, 2022). At the age of 53, Otto wins a prestigious Paris competition to design an ambitious and innovative structure: an open cube of glass and marble that would eventually become the Grande Arche. Pragmatic and self-assured, he quickly earns the admiration of French president François Mitterrand (Michel Fau), only to find himself ensnared in a web of speculation, bureaucratic obstacles, political maneuvering, and personal agendas fueled by the president’s adviser Subilon (Xavier Dolan). Teaming up with architect-turned-project manager Paul Andreu (Swann Arlaud), Otto faces mounting technical challenges, restrictive regulations, and shifting political realities that continually threaten the project’s completion.
Writer-director Stéphane Demoustier establishes an effective pace, allowing this attentive and highly accessible biographical drama to command our interest through a well-constructed narrative, assured visual storytelling, and strong performances. With a sly, almost mischievous sensibility, he captures the corrosive effects of human frustration while maintaining a firm grasp on the emotional stakes.
The Great Arch is not a film you can devour, but to be gradually devoured by. Never cold, never distant; only unsettling in the honesty with which it portrays governmental indifference and institutional obstruction. There’s something undeniably gripping about this realistic account of a visionary man slowly worn down by forces beyond his control.
