Kika: a great, confusing film about mourning (review)

Manon Clavel shines as a Belgian social worker hit by the sudden death of her partner, clinging to the world of paid BDSM sex so as not to sink financially.

This is the most unique and disarming film about grief seen in a long time. And whose first 30 minutes, dominated by a keen sense of rupture, knowingly postpone the moment of understanding what type of film we are in to propel us instantly into the head of its heroine, herself totally destabilized by what she is going through. Because this Belgian social worker finds herself struck by the sudden death of the man for whom she fell in love at first sight and left the father of her daughter. And, now alone, pregnant with him, without financial stability or housing, she will find herself, through a combination of circumstances,… learning the profession of dominatrix and earning her living as a sex worker!

Coming from the documentary, Alexe Poukine here avoids any sordid miserabilism like any “exotic” representation of the BDSM world. An accuracy that we find in the figures of the clients where she shows men calling on these women and this dynamic of domination-submission for reasons much more complex than a simple impulse. Poukine moves on this tenuous thread with an ease that is never faulted, bringing out bursts of laughter and heartbreaking moments precisely where we least expect them. And this story of this reconstruction truly unlike any other also relies on a performer capable of riding this emotional roller coaster without ever falling off the ride: Manon Clavel. Her intertwined virtuosity and naturalness make her the co-creator of this eminently complex and incredibly endearing character.

Of Alexe Poukin. With Manon Clavel, Ethelle Gonzalez Lardued, Makita Samba… Duration 1h44. Released November 12, 2025