Potiche: a fun, stylish comedy with fabulous 70s fashion!
I just saw this film, and although it's not exactly on my re-watch list it was very fun the first time around. I was hooked by the trailer, and it did not disappoint. The story, adapted from a 1980 play of the same name, is pretty simple: an upper class housewife takes over her husband's umbrella factory when the workers go on strike, with comic and inspirational results. The writing is pretty elementary, but what really elevates this film (in addition to a talented cast of actors who seem to be enjoying themselves), is its attitude, style, and a healthy sense of fun. It tackles the characters and story with panache, and gives us a loving and hilarious sendup of the 1970s in all their rainbow pastel glory.
This is really a Catherine Deneuve vehicle, but she's just so winning and charming throughout that it's hard to begrudge it her. Fabrice Luchini is also a hoot as the outrageously entitled cheating misogynist bourgeois husband/boss who gets skewered by both wife and secretary/mistress alike. Gérard Depardieu was actually the weak link in my opinion; I've liked him in other films, but I just felt like he wasn't really trying here. My favorite character by far was the slightly cooky secretary, who gradually shifts her allegiance from the boss she's sleeping with to said boss' wife, finding that she likes being treated with respect rather than as an obliging sex toy. And I thought the relationship between Suzanne and her son was adorable.
Potiche (Trophy Wife) is currently in select US theaters, with a wider release to come.
