Tag: G

MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGUERITTE – The Review

Film fans have been enchanted by cinema small towns like Bedford Falls in IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE ( and of course TV fans will always adore the charms of THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW’s Mayberry ) for many years. Well, let’s hop across the pond and spend some time in a mellow little village over in France. This is the setting of a sweet little love story called MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGUERITTE that begins with a chance encounter between two villagers with very little in common, but who soon are able to fill a void in each other’s lives.

We first meet the younger, male half of the duo during the film’s opening titles. Chazes Germain ( Gerard Depaedieu ) is a middle aged, lumbering, good natured jack-of-all-trades known to most everyone in the little town. He frequently hangs out at a local tavern ( you almost expect them to yell Chazes upon his entrance ala’ Norm in TV’s ” Cheers” ), shares his bed with his lover, the much younger bus driver Annette ( Sophie Guillemin ), and tends to his vegetable garden ( he sells his crops at a local farmers’ market ) in the back yard of the home of his now senile ( but still abrasive ) mother ( Chazes lives in a trailer outside the house ). His life changes radically when he meets a sprightly septuagenarian named Margueritte ( Gisele Casadesus ) at a bench in the town park. She lives at a nearby retirement center and enjoys reading in the fresh air. Her reading aloud sparks a passion for literature in Chazes. In flashbacks we see young Chazes belittled by a bullying teacher as he struggles to read to the class. She even gives him her dictionary as a present. Unfortunately Marguritte’s family cannot afford her apartment at the center and may have to move in with them in Brussels. This, along with news from Annette, prompts Chazes to make some decisions that will change his life.

Spending some time in that park with these two is a nice change of pace from some of the loud, bombastic recent cinematic offerings. Much of the charm that has made Depardieu a French movie icon is well displayed here. Chazes may be thick ( in body and intellect ), but he is a kind, gentle soul. Unfortunately he has a talent for saying the wrong things ( especially when he tries to console the tavern owner who has lost her much younger lover ). This makes the flashback scenes so heartbreaking . Not only do we have the dour school scenes I’ve mentioned, but we see the horrific physical and verbal abuse he endured from his frustrated single mother ( father was out of the picture after conception). Although well into adulthood Chazes still yearns for a nurturing parental figure. The kind, caring, patience Margueritte fulfills his needs. She also becomes an encouraging teacher that opens up the door to knowledge that was slammed shut by the local school. There’s lots of small laughs along with the pathos. Chazes’s conversation with a cat is particularly lovely. MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGUERITTE is an endearing modern fable that shows how an act of kindness can cause a ripple effect and bless everyone it touches.

Overall Rating: Four  Out of Five Stars

POTICHE – The Review

This brand new adaptation of a 1970’s French stage farce reminded me of something else the French are known for: desserts, namely pastry.  They’re not too sugary, light, fluffy, and usually very tasty. Well, POTICHE (French for trophy wife) is the same delightful treat. In this film the dollop of cream on top would be the casting of two iconic French film stars in lead roles.

The year is 1977-Springtime to be exact. Suzanne Pujol (Catherine Deneuve) is blithely content in her privileged life. She inherited a successful umbrella factory from her late father. Her husband Robert runs the business with an iron fist (while canoodling with his executive secretary Nadege). Robert and Suzanne have two grown children-Joelle, ultra conservative wife to a constantly traveling businessman and mother of two young boys and Laurent a very liberal art student engaged to a frequently absent local woman. Soon after being released by striking factory workers who held him hostage, Robert is stricken with a heart “episode.” Upon the strong recommendation of the family physician, Robert must take a sabbatical from work. Perhaps a vacation cruise will do the trick. But who’ll will make sure the umbrellas are made? Suzanne will return to the work force! First she must charm the worker representatives.To do this, she consults with the Mayor, Maurice (Gerard Depardieu), who had enjoyed a passionate fling with her twenty five years ago. With the labor disputes settled Suzanne calls on her two children to help, Joelle in management and Laurent in creative designs. Things are going swimmingly until Robert returns. He’s horrified at the changes she has made. Now, that he’s regained his health the business must be put back on track. But, Suzanne doesn’t wish to hand over the reins. What will happen as the two fight over control of the family factory? Who will the kids side with? And will she rekindle her passion for Maurice?

Although the movie’s set in the late 70’s it owes quite a bit to the bright Technicolor farces of the 60’s (especially those frothy Doris Day flicks). Except Ms. Day never had a past as lusty as Suzanne’s. In the title role Deneuve is absolutely radiant, full of sly looks and double takes. Her character’s charm and beauty are used to obscure the intelligence and savvy. She’s a calm contrast to her blustering hubby and direction-less children. Depardieu’s Maurice is a lumbering bull of a bureaucrat until he’s reminded of the passion he shared with Suzanne. He begins to act like a man half his age especially when he suspects that he fathered a child during that fling. The hairstyles and fashions from thirty four years ago are faithfully reproduced along with the music. There’s a big dance sequence when Maurice takes Suzanne to a local disco. For all the lovers of classic films, it was a great treat seeing Deneuve surrounded by brightly colored umbrellas reminding  us of 1964’s THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG. She even gets a solo song near the end. If you’re looking for a light cinematic treat, then POTICHE maybe be the movie dessert you’re craving.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars


POTICHE – Trailer and Poster

Music Box Films Presents
Francois Ozon’s POTICHE Starring Catherine Deneuve

*** Palm Springs International Film Festival 2011 – Opening Night Film ***
*** Venice Film Festival 2010 – Official Selection ***
*** Toronto International Film Festival 2010 – Official Selection ***

OPENING IN LOS ANGELES AND NEW YORK ON MARCH 25

In French, a potiche is a vase or decorative object of little value and no real practical use that you put on a shelf or a mantel. The word is also used in everyday language as a derogatory term for a woman who is considered eye candy, or a woman living in the shadow of her husband who doesn’t seem to have her own identity. Certain wives of politicians, or even certain female politicians themselves, have been called “potiches”, including Madame Chirac, or more recently, Ségolène Royal.

Set in 1977 in a provincial French town, POTICHE is a free adaptation of the 1970s eponymous hit comic play. Catherine Deneuve is Suzanne Pujol, a submissive, housebound ‘trophy housewife’ (or “potiche,”) who steps in to manage the umbrella factory run by her wealthy and tyrannical husband (Fabrice Luchini) after the workers go on strike and take him hostage. To everyone’s surprise, Suzanne proves herself a competent and assertive woman of action. But when her husband returns from a restful cruise in top form, things get complicated. Gérard Depardieu plays a former union leader and Suzanne’s ex-beau who still holds a flame for her. Acclaimed writer-director Francois Ozon (“Swimming Pool,” “Under the Sand,” “Time to Leave,”) who had previously directed Ms. Deneuve in the international hit “8 Women,” twists the original play on its head to create his own satirical and hilarious take on the war between the sexes and classes.

POTICHE reunites French cinema legends Catherine Deneuve and Gérard Depardieu in an ensemble cast that includes comic greats Fabrice Luchini and Karin Viard (as Luchini’s secretary and mistress,) while Judith Godreche and Jérémie Renier play the Pujols’ entitled daughter and sexually ambiguous son. The impeccable 1970s era set design and costumes, were created by Katia Wyzkop and Pascaline Chavanne, respectively.

POTICHE OPENS IN LOS ANGELES AND NEW YORK ON MARCH 25
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