The Shiny Shrimps (French: Les Crevettes pailletées) is a 2019 French sports comedy film directed by Cédric Le Gallo and Maxime Govare.[1] The film stars Nicolas Gob as Matthias Le Goff, an Olympic swimming champion who makes a homophobic comment in a television interview, and is disciplined by the national swim team with the responsibility of coaching a gay water polo team who aspire to compete in the Gay Games.[2]

The Shiny Shrimps
Theatrical release poster
FrenchLes Crevettes pailletées
Directed by
  • Cédric Le Gallo
  • Maxime Govare
Written by
  • Cédric Le Gallo
  • Maxime Govare
Produced by
  • Renaud Chélélékian
  • Édouard Duprey
Starring
CinematographyJérôme Alméras
Edited bySamuel Danési
Music by
  • Thomas Couzinier
  • Frédéric Kooshmanian
Production
companies
  • Les Improductibles
  • Kaly Productions
Distributed byUniversal Pictures International France
Release dates
  • 19 January 2019 (2019-01-19) (Alpe d'Huez)
  • 8 May 2019 (2019-05-08) (France)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench

The film premiered at the L'Alpe d'Huez Film Festival on 19 January 2019, and was released theatrically in France on 8 May 2019. A sequel, The Revenge of the Shiny Shrimps (French: La Revanche des Crevettes pailletées), was released on 13 April 2022.[3]

Synopsis

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Mathias Le Goff is a world vice-champion swimmer. After making homophobic comments during a television interview, he is sanctioned to train the glittering Shiny Shrimp, a gay water polo team, for three months for their participation in the Gay Games in Croatia. Two worlds that everything seems to oppose will have to team up as best they can.

Cast

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Reception

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On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 75% based on reviews from 28 critics, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "The Shiny Shrimps traffics in cliche, but for fans of inspirational underdog stories, the results may be too uplifting to resist."[4]

The film received much support in public through popular presentations that included local LGBT/queer athletes.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the film remained a popular suggestion in LGBT+ media listings of video on demand.[5][6]

Accolades

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Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
L'Alpe d'Huez Film Festival January 20, 2019 Special Jury Award — Feature Film The Shiny Shrimps Won [7]
Molodist Kyiv International Film Festival June 6, 2019 Best LGBTQ Film Nominated [8]
Reel Q: Pittsburgh LGBTQ+ Film Festival October 12, 2019 Best Narrative Feature Won [9]
Franzoesische Filmtage-Tuebingen November 6, 2019 Prix du Public Won [10]

References

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  1. ^ Joudet, Murielle (8 May 2019). "« Les Crevettes pailletées » opte pour un éloge convenu de la différence". Le Monde (in French).
  2. ^ van Hoeij, Boyd (19 June 2019). "'The Shiny Shrimps' ('Les Crevettes pailletees'): Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
  3. ^ "La Revanche des Crevettes Pailletées". AlloCiné (in French). Retrieved 25 September 2022.
  4. ^ "The Shiny Shrimps (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Queerfilmnacht – Rückblick" (in German). 6 August 2020. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  6. ^ "Die glitzernden Garnelen". Sissymag (in German). Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  7. ^ "THE SHINY SHRIMPS". Voilah!. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  8. ^ "The Shiny Shrimps(HKLGFF 2019)". Broadway Cinematheque. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  9. ^ Smerker, Nick (5 September 2019). "The Shiny Shrimps". Reel Q. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  10. ^ "2019 – FRANZÖSISCHE FILMTAGE TÜBINGEN-STUTTGART". franzoesische.filmtage-tuebingen.de. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
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