The 1988 French Comedy Life Is A Long Quiet River is currently available on Blu-ray From Arrow Academy.
An outrageously wicked comedy about two families from award winning debut filmmaker Étienne Chatiliez, this fast-paced satire became the most popular French comedy of the decade.
The radiantly bourgeois Le Quesnoys with their immaculate children and perfect manners and the grubby, disreputable Groseilles are thrown together in absurd chaos by an act of revenge as they discover that twelve years prior their babies were switched at birth.
A witty send up of class relations and family ties, Life Is a Long Quiet River was celebrated with a host of trophies at France s César Awards ceremony winning for best screenplay, best debut work and acting prizes for Héléne Vincent and Catherine Jacob.
Special Edition Contents:
High Definition digital transferHigh Definition Blu-rayTM (1080p) presentationOriginal Mono audioNewly translated optional English subtitlesArchival interviews with director Étienne Chatiliez,...
An outrageously wicked comedy about two families from award winning debut filmmaker Étienne Chatiliez, this fast-paced satire became the most popular French comedy of the decade.
The radiantly bourgeois Le Quesnoys with their immaculate children and perfect manners and the grubby, disreputable Groseilles are thrown together in absurd chaos by an act of revenge as they discover that twelve years prior their babies were switched at birth.
A witty send up of class relations and family ties, Life Is a Long Quiet River was celebrated with a host of trophies at France s César Awards ceremony winning for best screenplay, best debut work and acting prizes for Héléne Vincent and Catherine Jacob.
Special Edition Contents:
High Definition digital transferHigh Definition Blu-rayTM (1080p) presentationOriginal Mono audioNewly translated optional English subtitlesArchival interviews with director Étienne Chatiliez,...
- 7/29/2020
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
While its execution feels as sophisticated as a bumper sticker slogan, director Lucas Belvaux’s This is Our Land, based on Jérôme Leroy’s book Le Bloc, functions nicely as a contemporary political thriller, respecting its audience’s intelligence enough to avoid an overly sensationalized narrative. It’s a timely story of Pauline (Émilie Dequenne), a nurse used as a pawn in a mayoral election by a controversial politician, played by Catherine Jacob, puppeteering the young woman’s rise to power. Famously, the president of France’s National Front Marine La Pen inspired Jacob’s character. As Pauline transitions into the limelight, even dying her hair blonde to better fit with the party’s brand, she finds her friends, family and patients deeply divided on her newfound political aspirations. While the script could use some touching up, Belvaux’s reserved visual style and strict commitment to tone renders This is...
- 4/17/2018
- by Tony Hinds
- The Film Stage
When she’s not working with the greatest auteurs in world cinema, Juliette Binoche is letting loose and exercising her comedic muscles — at least, if this trailer for an upcoming French comedy is any indication. Telle mère, telle fille aka Baby Bump(s) finds the Certified Copy actress as a mother who gets pregnant at the same time as her daughter, and wackiness ensues.
Also starring Camille Cottin, Lambert Wilson, and Catherine Jacob, it comes from co-writer/director Noémie Saglio and there’s no word if we’ll even see it pop up in the United States. Set for a release in France at the end of this month, it’s entertaining enough to see Binoche enjoying herself in this comedic playing field. Check out the trailer below and although there are no hardcoded subtitles, you can get a translation by clicking “Cc” then in settings, choosing the language of your choice.
Also starring Camille Cottin, Lambert Wilson, and Catherine Jacob, it comes from co-writer/director Noémie Saglio and there’s no word if we’ll even see it pop up in the United States. Set for a release in France at the end of this month, it’s entertaining enough to see Binoche enjoying herself in this comedic playing field. Check out the trailer below and although there are no hardcoded subtitles, you can get a translation by clicking “Cc” then in settings, choosing the language of your choice.
- 3/7/2017
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Politics drama that upset France’s Front National party to market premiere at Rendez-vous with French cinema.
The French release of Lucas Belvaux’s populist politics drama This Is Our Land (Chez Nous) will go ahead as planned in February and without cuts in the face of fierce criticism from France’s far-right Front National (Fn) party, distributor Jean Labadie of Paris-based Le Pacte has vowed.
The Belgian director’s film has been in the eye of a political storm this week following the release of the first trailer on Dec 30, ahead of its scheduled Feb 22 release.
Le Pacte’s international sales team will hold buyers-only screening at Unifrance’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema in Paris next week. It will get its festival world premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam at the end of this month.
“The film will be released in February as planned and in its current form. There will be...
The French release of Lucas Belvaux’s populist politics drama This Is Our Land (Chez Nous) will go ahead as planned in February and without cuts in the face of fierce criticism from France’s far-right Front National (Fn) party, distributor Jean Labadie of Paris-based Le Pacte has vowed.
The Belgian director’s film has been in the eye of a political storm this week following the release of the first trailer on Dec 30, ahead of its scheduled Feb 22 release.
Le Pacte’s international sales team will hold buyers-only screening at Unifrance’s Rendez-vous with French Cinema in Paris next week. It will get its festival world premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam at the end of this month.
“The film will be released in February as planned and in its current form. There will be...
- 1/6/2017
- ScreenDaily
Party vice-president condemns film about the far right as ‘scandalous’ and ‘unacceptable’ ahead of French presidential election
A film about the rise of far-right populism has triggered outrage in France after its trailer appeared to showcase a character based on Marine Le Pen, the president of the Front National and a candidate in France’s 2017 presidential election.
Chez Nous (Aka This Is Our Land) stars Émilie Duquenne as a nurse who becomes a political success in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region after becoming involved with the Patriotic Bloc, a thinly disguised fictional version of the Front National. It is due for release in France on 22 February, two months before the first round of voting, and the trailer briefly features a character apparently modelled on Le Pen, played by veteran performer Catherine Jacob.
Continue reading...
A film about the rise of far-right populism has triggered outrage in France after its trailer appeared to showcase a character based on Marine Le Pen, the president of the Front National and a candidate in France’s 2017 presidential election.
Chez Nous (Aka This Is Our Land) stars Émilie Duquenne as a nurse who becomes a political success in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region after becoming involved with the Patriotic Bloc, a thinly disguised fictional version of the Front National. It is due for release in France on 22 February, two months before the first round of voting, and the trailer briefly features a character apparently modelled on Le Pen, played by veteran performer Catherine Jacob.
Continue reading...
- 1/3/2017
- by Andrew Pulver
- The Guardian - Film News
French supernatural chiller 'Livid' ('Livide') is due to arrive into UK homes when it gets its release onto DVD and Blu-ray here on 13 August. Fresh from French filmmaking team Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury '(Inside' (Aka 'A l'interieur') comes the tale of trainee carer Lucy whom upon the knowledge that her new comatosed patient has a treasure hidden somewhere in her house discovers more unsettling supernatural events being to occur. Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Felix Moati, Chloe Coulloud, Loic Berthezene, Serge Cabon, Beatrice Dalle, Catherine Jacob, Jeremy Kapone and Chloe Marcq are all on board for the horrors that await them so make sure you pick up your copy this Summer....
- 6/7/2012
- Horror Asylum
Wetting our appetites, short film, Decapode Shock, acts as the perfect accompaniment to Bustillo and Maury's genre-defying “horror” film, Livid. From a surreal part-animated sci-fi revenge tale with a horse-riding half-man half-crab wearing a spacesuit, Livid misleadingly takes us into the more mundane world of a caregiver.
Trainee Lucie (Chloe Coulloud) is shadowing Catherine (Catherine Jacob) for ten days, accompanying her to clients' houses to help with their daily injections. After Lucie's mother committed suicide some eight months earlier, her dad is working nights and they're desperate for money. The fact her dad's new girlfriend is soon to move in just makes matters worse. When Lucie discovers there's apparently “hidden treasure” in the house of a client, she's convinced by her equally poor fisherman boyfriend to seek it out but uncovers more than she ever dreamed of.
Bustillo and Maury signpost imminent disaster before we even meet Lucie through their suitably eerie title sequence.
Trainee Lucie (Chloe Coulloud) is shadowing Catherine (Catherine Jacob) for ten days, accompanying her to clients' houses to help with their daily injections. After Lucie's mother committed suicide some eight months earlier, her dad is working nights and they're desperate for money. The fact her dad's new girlfriend is soon to move in just makes matters worse. When Lucie discovers there's apparently “hidden treasure” in the house of a client, she's convinced by her equally poor fisherman boyfriend to seek it out but uncovers more than she ever dreamed of.
Bustillo and Maury signpost imminent disaster before we even meet Lucie through their suitably eerie title sequence.
- 5/3/2012
- Shadowlocked
French horror 'Livid' ('Livide') will finally arrive in theatres across France next month. The flick has received a release date in France of 7 December 2011 and comes courtesy of French filmmakers Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury who were responsible for the brutal home invasion horror 'Inside' (Aka 'A l'interieur'). The new supernatural chiller stars Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Felix Moati, Chloe Coulloud, Loic Berthezene, Serge Cabon, Beatrice Dalle, Catherine Jacob, Jeremy Kapone and Chloe Marcq. Now why not treat yourself to some good old fashioned spookiness with the new 'Livid' trailer which you can check out below....
- 11/10/2011
- Horror Asylum
Livid Trailer, Livide Trailer. Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury‘s Livid / Livide (2011) movie trailer stars Loïc Berthezene, Serge Cabon, Chloé Coulloud, Béatrice Dalle, and Catherine Jacob. Livid‘s plot synopsis: “It’s young Lucy’s first day as a trainee in-house caregiver. She visits Mrs Jessel, an old woman who lies in cerebral coma, by herself, in her large desolate house. Learning by accident that Mrs Jessel, a former dance teacher of repute, supposedly possesses a treasure somewhere in the house, Lucy and friends William and Ben decide to search the house in the hope of finding it. At night, they get into the house, which reveals itself to be increasingly peculiar. Their hunt for Mrs Jessel’s treasure leads them into a horrifying supernatural series of events that will change Lucy forever…”
After Inside / À l’intérieur (reviewed here: Inside / À l’intérieur (2007) Film Review) was released, I was really...
After Inside / À l’intérieur (reviewed here: Inside / À l’intérieur (2007) Film Review) was released, I was really...
- 11/5/2011
- by filmbook
- Film-Book
Today we have a the theatrical trailer for Livid a French horror film that looks really creepy. The trailer is in French, once a English sub-titled trailer comes out we will be sure to post it. Livid is a horror fairytale set during Halloween night when three youths decide to burglarize an old lady's desolate house, but what awaits them is no ordinary house... Livid aka Livide is directed and written by Julien Maury, Alexandre Bustillo and stars Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob, Béatrice Dalle, Chloé Coulloud Felix, and Moati Jeremy Kapone.
- 10/29/2011
- Best-Horror-Movies.com
Livid aka Livide is directed and written by Julien Maury, Alexandre Bustillo and stars Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob, Béatrice Dalle, Chloé Coulloud Felix, and Moati Jeremy Kapone. Dimension Films has acquired French language horror film Livid directed by Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo from Snd (Groupe M6). The film stars Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Chloe Coulloud, and Felix Moati and marks the second collaboration with Dimension Films and duo Maury and Bustillo, who previously directed Inside. Livid first premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, 2011.
- 10/26/2011
- Best-Horror-Movies.com
Remember the brutal home invasion horror 'Inside' (Aka 'A l'interieur') from French duo Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury? If not, check it out! But for now Alex and Julien are back with new supernatural horror Livid (Aka 'Livide') and Dimension Films has acquired the flick so hopefully we'll soon be seeing this either in our local theatres or at the very least on DVD. In the meantime feast of these three new teaser posters for the movie. Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Felix Moati, Chloe Coulloud, Loic Berthezene, Serge Cabon, Beatrice Dalle, Catherine Jacob, Jeremy Kapone and Chloe Marcq all star. You can check out the plot info and trio of new one-sheets below....
- 10/26/2011
- Horror Asylum
Inside directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo are back with more French horror, this time with Livid (review), a "living nightmare" that has been both celebrated and panned by critics. Arriving in theaters next year from Dimension Films, Livid is a horror fairytale set during Halloween night when three youths decide to burglarize an old lady's desolate house, but what awaits them is no ordinary house... Inside you'll find a creeptacular international one sheet that's very representational of the film's atmosphere. Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob, Béatrice Dalle, Chloé Coulloud, Felix Moati, Jeremy Kapone all star. Hopefully Dimension will announce a release soon!
- 10/26/2011
- bloody-disgusting.com
Directors: Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury Writers: Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury Starring: Chloé Marcq, Félix Moati, Jérémy Kapone, Chloé Coulloud, Marie-Claude Pietragalla Upon entering the Fantastic Fest day seven screening of Livid, I was beginning to worry that I was becoming too desensitized to violence. Nothing thus far at Ff 2011 had revolted me as much as previous years' screenings had. Luckily, I could rely upon writer-directors Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury to right that wrong. The plot is extremely simple. During Anna's (Chloé Marcq) first day at work as a home healthcare provider, she tags along with an old pro, Wilson (Catherine Jacob). Their rounds take them to a scary old mansion in which Jessel (Marie-Claude Pietragalla) is rotting away in a coma. Wilson happens to mention that the old hag has a treasure hidden in the mansion, and Anna promptly passes that information along to William (Félix Moati) and Ben...
- 10/2/2011
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
Can I just say I really, really wanted to like Livid. I mean, I truly looked forward to eating this movie up, but instead, I found myself staring at my plate wondering what I had just been served. This is the second feature film from the writing/directing team of Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury, whose first outing was 2007′s Inside. Bustillo and Maury appeared to have started with an interesting idea, but somewhere along the path of production lost their focus, perhaps distracted by their own visions, which make numerous cameos that feel more like party crashers than official invitees.
Livid begins as a story about a teenager named Lucy (Chloe Coulloud) who is training as an in-house caregiver. She travels from house to house with her trainer Mrs. Wilson (Catherine Jacob). The last house of the day is a large mansion owned by Miss Jessel (Maria-Claude Pietragalla), a...
Livid begins as a story about a teenager named Lucy (Chloe Coulloud) who is training as an in-house caregiver. She travels from house to house with her trainer Mrs. Wilson (Catherine Jacob). The last house of the day is a large mansion owned by Miss Jessel (Maria-Claude Pietragalla), a...
- 9/24/2011
- by Travis Keune
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Sure, we're excited about a few American horror films arriving this year, but it cannot match the anticipation we hold for Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury's Livid . You remember those cats from France, right? They're the duo behind Inside and at the American Film Market last year, Shock was the first to deliver you a first look at Livid here and here . Well, some behind-the-scenes interviews were conducted and posted on YouTube. You can watch them below; it's even better if you know French and understand what's being said. Starring Beatrice Dalle, Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob and Chloe Coulloud, the film concerns a gal named Lucy on her first day as a caregiver. She visits Mrs. Jessel, a lonely old woman who lies in a coma in her large remote house....
- 5/10/2011
- shocktillyoudrop.com
Inside directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo are finally in production on their follow-up horror project, Livid (Livide), which will star Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob, Béatrice Dalle, Chloé Coulloud, Felix Moati, and Jeremy Kapone. The film will follow Lucy, a young nurse, and her friends Ben and William, who all plan to burgle the home of one of her patients - an old woman who has been in a coma for years; Legend has it that there's a fabulous treasure hidden there. What they find goes beyond... their worst nightmares. This morning we scored the first Ever image that channels a little girl's inner demon. Omfg.
- 11/3/2010
- bloody-disgusting.com
Sink your teeth into this: A hideous new photo from Livid , the next film to come from Inside 's Alexandre Bustillo and Julian Maury. Starring Beatrice Dalle, Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob and Chloe Coulloud, the film concerns a gal named Lucy on her first day as a caregiver. She visits Mrs. Jessel, a lonely old woman who lies in a coma in her large remote house. Hearing of a treasure that Mrs. Jessel, a celebrated dance teacher, has supposedly hidden for years, Lucy and friends, William and Ben, decide to search for it. At night, after crossing the heath, they break into Mrs. Jessel's house, and enter its darkness. It won't last long before they discover the most unexpected treasure, as well as the true identity of Mrs. Jessel, who just woke up... For all of...
- 11/3/2010
- shocktillyoudrop.com
Inside directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo are finally gearing for production on their follow-up horror project, Livid (also known as Livide), which will star Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Catherine Jacob, Béatrice Dalle, Chloé Coulloud, Felix Moati, and Jeremy Kapone. The film will follow Lucy, a young nurse, and her friends Ben and William, who all plan to burgle the home of one of her patients - an old woman who has been in a coma for years; Legend has it that there's a fabulous treasure hidden there. What they find goes beyond... their worst nightmares. Check out the official Afm sales art inside.
- 11/1/2010
- bloody-disgusting.com
PARIS -- French director Marc Esposito will unite Gallic thespians Jean Reno and Sophie Marceau for a film lover's fairy tale with his fourth feature, Cendrillon (Cinderella), the filmmaker said Monday.
The adaptation of the classic rags-to-riches story will start filming in summer 2008 with a budget of 23 million ($36.2 million).
Produced by Pierre Javaux Prods., the film also will star this year's Cesar winner for Most Promising Female Newcomer, Melanie Laurent, as Cinderella and veteran actress Catherine Jacob as her wicked aunt.
Reno will play the role of the king and Marceau will portray the fairy godmother.
The adaptation of the classic rags-to-riches story will start filming in summer 2008 with a budget of 23 million ($36.2 million).
Produced by Pierre Javaux Prods., the film also will star this year's Cesar winner for Most Promising Female Newcomer, Melanie Laurent, as Cinderella and veteran actress Catherine Jacob as her wicked aunt.
Reno will play the role of the king and Marceau will portray the fairy godmother.
- 10/2/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
PARIS -- French television personality Jacques Chancel will head the jury for the four-day Festival of British Films in Dinard, organizers said on Tuesday. British actors Hugo Speer, Phil Davis and Kieran O'Brien will join French counterparts Cecile de France, Catherine Jacob, Laura Smet and Philippe Leroy-Beaulieu on the jury for the event, which unspools Thursday. Six British films are vying for the Hitchcock D'Or award, which will be presented at the 15th edition's closing ceremony Sunday.
- 10/6/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
One doesn't have to have a Ph.D. in geriatric behavior to acknowledge that the elderly, like small children, have a natural power base for obnoxious behavior, and that kind and considerate people often indulge them, dismissing their most unsavory antics as a side-effect of their age. In certain instances, including this story, such latitude is perceived by the elderly person as a form of condescension, and, ultimately, as a type of personal rejection.
In this spry and vital story, Tsilla Chelton stars as Danielle, a chronically depressed 82-year-old widow who longs for death; at least it will reunite her with her late husband (who died more than 50 years ago on Armistice Day) whose portrait she commiserates with in extended, paranoidal monologues. Content only when gorging upon sweets (forbidden by her doctor) and sneaking peeks at TV soaps, the old woman tyrannizes all who care for her, most prominently a devoted housekeeper (Neige Dolsky), a grand nephew (Eric Prat) and his obsequious wife (Catherine Jacob). She also gets her jollies from annoying strangers, kicking household pets and disdaining authority figures -- in short, as W.C. Fields would concur, she's not all bad.
Capturing both the elderly woman's mean-spirited nature as well as her sense of abandonment, screenwriter Florence Quentin has fleshed out a splendidly entertaining yet disturbing story. While the scenario seems a tad bloated with repetitions of the aged Danielle's most-abrasive behavior, director Etienne Chatiliez has honed a remarkably rounded human portrait in this spare and feisty movie.
The performances all shine, especially Chelton as the autocratic aunt. It's a straight-to-the-marrow performance, and Chelton maintains a hard integrity throughout, never sugar-coating her portrayal of the rancorous Danielle with false endearment or cutesy theatrics.
As the old woman's well-meaning but ultimately off-putting familial caretakers, Eric Prat and Mathieu Foulon are perfect -- they are the personification of good intentions gone awry. Isabelle Nanty's performance as a spunky young woman who calls the old lady's bluff is terrific. Nanty deftly shows her independent character's inner need to be loved, as well as her winning take-no-guff attitude.
Technical contributions are excellent. Director of photography Philippe Welt's crisp compositions and composer Gabriel Yared's crosscurrent woodwinds eloquently convey the contradictory human needs on display here.
TATIE DANIELLE
Prestige
A Film by Etienne Chatiliez
Producer Charles Gassot
Director Etienne Chatiliez
Screenwriter Florence Quentin
Line producer Volker Lemke
Director of photographyPhilippe Welt
Production designerGeoffroy Larcher
MusicGabriel Yared
EditorCatherine Renault
Costume designer Elisabeth Tavernier
Color/Stereo
Cast:
Tatie DanielleTsilla Chelton
Catherine Billard Catherine Jacob
Sandrine Isabelle Nanty
Odile Neige Dolsky
Jean-Pierre Billard Laurence Fevrier
Madamde Lafosse Virginie Pradal
Jean-Marie Billard Mathieu Foulon
Running time -- 110 minutes
No MPAA rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
In this spry and vital story, Tsilla Chelton stars as Danielle, a chronically depressed 82-year-old widow who longs for death; at least it will reunite her with her late husband (who died more than 50 years ago on Armistice Day) whose portrait she commiserates with in extended, paranoidal monologues. Content only when gorging upon sweets (forbidden by her doctor) and sneaking peeks at TV soaps, the old woman tyrannizes all who care for her, most prominently a devoted housekeeper (Neige Dolsky), a grand nephew (Eric Prat) and his obsequious wife (Catherine Jacob). She also gets her jollies from annoying strangers, kicking household pets and disdaining authority figures -- in short, as W.C. Fields would concur, she's not all bad.
Capturing both the elderly woman's mean-spirited nature as well as her sense of abandonment, screenwriter Florence Quentin has fleshed out a splendidly entertaining yet disturbing story. While the scenario seems a tad bloated with repetitions of the aged Danielle's most-abrasive behavior, director Etienne Chatiliez has honed a remarkably rounded human portrait in this spare and feisty movie.
The performances all shine, especially Chelton as the autocratic aunt. It's a straight-to-the-marrow performance, and Chelton maintains a hard integrity throughout, never sugar-coating her portrayal of the rancorous Danielle with false endearment or cutesy theatrics.
As the old woman's well-meaning but ultimately off-putting familial caretakers, Eric Prat and Mathieu Foulon are perfect -- they are the personification of good intentions gone awry. Isabelle Nanty's performance as a spunky young woman who calls the old lady's bluff is terrific. Nanty deftly shows her independent character's inner need to be loved, as well as her winning take-no-guff attitude.
Technical contributions are excellent. Director of photography Philippe Welt's crisp compositions and composer Gabriel Yared's crosscurrent woodwinds eloquently convey the contradictory human needs on display here.
TATIE DANIELLE
Prestige
A Film by Etienne Chatiliez
Producer Charles Gassot
Director Etienne Chatiliez
Screenwriter Florence Quentin
Line producer Volker Lemke
Director of photographyPhilippe Welt
Production designerGeoffroy Larcher
MusicGabriel Yared
EditorCatherine Renault
Costume designer Elisabeth Tavernier
Color/Stereo
Cast:
Tatie DanielleTsilla Chelton
Catherine Billard Catherine Jacob
Sandrine Isabelle Nanty
Odile Neige Dolsky
Jean-Pierre Billard Laurence Fevrier
Madamde Lafosse Virginie Pradal
Jean-Marie Billard Mathieu Foulon
Running time -- 110 minutes
No MPAA rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
- 6/23/1991
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Little old ladies have usually gotten a bum rap in the movies, stereotyped as loveable, quirky and good-hearted. The lead character in ''Tatie Danielle'' (Aunt Danielle) has none of those qualities. She's an irascible, manipulative old coot and, accordingly, a breath of fresh air on the screen. Black comedy connoisseurs who fondly remember ''Where's Poppa?'' and ''Throw Mama From the Train'' will delight in ''Tatie Danielle, '' both for its dark humor and for its perceptive slant on the debilitating effects of aging.
One doesn't have to have a Ph.D. in geriatric behavior to acknowledge that the elderly, like small children, have a natural power base for obnoxious behavior, and that kind and considerate people often indulge them, dismissing their most unsavory antics as a side-effect of their age. In certain instances, including this story, such latitude is perceived by the elderly person as a form of condescension, and, ultimately, as a type of personal rejection.
In this spry and vital story, Tsilla Chelton stars as Danielle, a chronically depressed 82-year-old widow who longs for death; at least it will reunite her with her late husband (who died more than 50 years ago on Armistice Day) whose portrait she commiserates with in extended, paranoidal monologues. Content only when gorging upon sweets (forbidden by her doctor) and sneaking peeks at TV soaps, the old woman tyrannizes all who care for her, most prominently a devoted housekeeper (Neige Dolsky), a grand nephew (Eric Prat) and his obsequious wife (Catherine Jacob). She also gets her jollies from annoying strangers, kicking household pets and disdaining authority figures -- in short, as W.C. Fields would concur, she's not all bad.
Capturing both the elderly woman's mean-spirited nature as well as her sense of abandonment, screenwriter Florence Quentin has fleshed out a splendidly entertaining yet disturbing story. While the scenario seems a tad bloated with repetitions of the aged Danielle's most-abrasive behavior, director Etienne Chatiliez has honed a remarkably rounded human portrait in this spare and feisty movie.
The performances all shine, especially Chelton as the autocratic aunt. It's a straight-to-the-marrow performance, and Chelton maintains a hard integrity throughout, never sugar-coating her portrayal of the rancorous Danielle with false endearment or cutesy theatrics.
As the old woman's well-meaning but ultimately off-putting familial caretakers, Eric Prat and Mathieu Foulon are perfect -- they are the personification of good intentions gone awry. Isabelle Nanty's performance as a spunky young woman who calls the old lady's bluff is terrific. Nanty deftly shows her independent character's inner need to be loved, as well as her winning take-no-guff attitude.
Technical contributions are excellent. Director of photography Philippe Welt's crisp compositions and composer Gabriel Yared's crosscurrent woodwinds eloquently convey the contradictory human needs on display here.
TATIE DANIELLE
Prestige
A Film by Etienne Chatiliez
ProducerCharles Gassot
DirectorEtienne Chatiliez
ScreenwriterFlorence Quentin
Line producerVolker Lemke
Director of photographyPhilippe Welt
Production designerGeoffroy Larcher
MusicGabriel Yared
EditorCatherine Renault
Costume designerElisabeth Tavernier
Color/Stereo
Cast:
Tatie DanielleTsilla Chelton
Catherine BillardCatherine Jacob
SandrineIsabelle Nanty
OdileNeige Dolsky
Jean-Pierre BillardLaurence Fevrier
Madamde LafosseVirginie Pradal
Jean-Marie BillardMathieu Foulon
Running time -- 110 minutes
No MPAA rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
One doesn't have to have a Ph.D. in geriatric behavior to acknowledge that the elderly, like small children, have a natural power base for obnoxious behavior, and that kind and considerate people often indulge them, dismissing their most unsavory antics as a side-effect of their age. In certain instances, including this story, such latitude is perceived by the elderly person as a form of condescension, and, ultimately, as a type of personal rejection.
In this spry and vital story, Tsilla Chelton stars as Danielle, a chronically depressed 82-year-old widow who longs for death; at least it will reunite her with her late husband (who died more than 50 years ago on Armistice Day) whose portrait she commiserates with in extended, paranoidal monologues. Content only when gorging upon sweets (forbidden by her doctor) and sneaking peeks at TV soaps, the old woman tyrannizes all who care for her, most prominently a devoted housekeeper (Neige Dolsky), a grand nephew (Eric Prat) and his obsequious wife (Catherine Jacob). She also gets her jollies from annoying strangers, kicking household pets and disdaining authority figures -- in short, as W.C. Fields would concur, she's not all bad.
Capturing both the elderly woman's mean-spirited nature as well as her sense of abandonment, screenwriter Florence Quentin has fleshed out a splendidly entertaining yet disturbing story. While the scenario seems a tad bloated with repetitions of the aged Danielle's most-abrasive behavior, director Etienne Chatiliez has honed a remarkably rounded human portrait in this spare and feisty movie.
The performances all shine, especially Chelton as the autocratic aunt. It's a straight-to-the-marrow performance, and Chelton maintains a hard integrity throughout, never sugar-coating her portrayal of the rancorous Danielle with false endearment or cutesy theatrics.
As the old woman's well-meaning but ultimately off-putting familial caretakers, Eric Prat and Mathieu Foulon are perfect -- they are the personification of good intentions gone awry. Isabelle Nanty's performance as a spunky young woman who calls the old lady's bluff is terrific. Nanty deftly shows her independent character's inner need to be loved, as well as her winning take-no-guff attitude.
Technical contributions are excellent. Director of photography Philippe Welt's crisp compositions and composer Gabriel Yared's crosscurrent woodwinds eloquently convey the contradictory human needs on display here.
TATIE DANIELLE
Prestige
A Film by Etienne Chatiliez
ProducerCharles Gassot
DirectorEtienne Chatiliez
ScreenwriterFlorence Quentin
Line producerVolker Lemke
Director of photographyPhilippe Welt
Production designerGeoffroy Larcher
MusicGabriel Yared
EditorCatherine Renault
Costume designerElisabeth Tavernier
Color/Stereo
Cast:
Tatie DanielleTsilla Chelton
Catherine BillardCatherine Jacob
SandrineIsabelle Nanty
OdileNeige Dolsky
Jean-Pierre BillardLaurence Fevrier
Madamde LafosseVirginie Pradal
Jean-Marie BillardMathieu Foulon
Running time -- 110 minutes
No MPAA rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
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