Film Review
Coline Serreau followed her box office hit
Trois homes et un couffin (1985) with this
charming romantic comedy which features an improbable romance against a backdrop of boardroom
intrigue. Whilst the plot is ludicrously contrived and is let down by some awful
stereo-typical characterisation, it does have one significant plus point: the pairing
of Daniel Auteuil with Firmine Richard. This casting is a stroke of genius, both
actors bringing more than a note of poignancy and humanity to what would otherwise have
been a pretty routine comedy. Amazingly, this was Firmine Richard's first
professional acting job, not that you would ever suspect as much. Since, she has
appeared in well over a dozen films, including Francois Ozon's
8 femmes (2002). Less conspicuously,
two actors who have since acquired celebrity status also make their debuts in this film:
José Garcia and Isabelle Carré.
© James Travers 2005
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Coline Serreau film:
La Crise (1992)
Film Synopsis
Romuald Blindet, the young managing director of a major French yoghurt manufacturing
company, finds himself in deep water when he tries to increase productivity
at one of his factories. Several instances of food poisoning later
it becomes apparent to the anxious Romuald that his job may be on the line.
Fortunately, he has a guardian angel he never knew existed - his black office
cleaner Juliette. She comes in every evening to clean his office, and
he scarcely notices her. And why should he? - she is only the cleaning
lady. But it is through Juliette that Romuald discovers he is the victim
of a conspiracy cooked up by two of his senior colleagues to oust him from
the company. Romuald can hardly believe this at first but it turns
out that Juliette was right, and it is through her timely intervention that
he manages to salvage his career.
Not long after this episode, it is Juliette who desperately needs Romuald's
help, to lend her some money so that she can pay for a lawyer after her son
Aimé has been arrested for drugs use. But Romuald is out of
the country at the time, on a business trip to America, and so Aimé
is convicted and sent to prison. On his return to France, Romuald settles
his debt with Juliette and her son quickly gains his freedom. Romuald's
next shock is the discovery that his wife Françoise has been having
an affair behind his back with one of his colleagues - the one whose ineptitude
almost cost him his job! Romuald now realises that there is only one
woman he loves, and that is Juliette. The question is: does she feel
the same way about him? She has already been disappointed with five
husbands. Will she even consider taking on a sixth...?
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
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Film Credits
- Director: Coline Serreau
- Script: Coline Serreau
- Cinematographer: Jean-Noël Ferragut
- Music: Jérôme Reese
- Cast: Daniel Auteuil (Romuald Blindet),
Firmine Richard (Juliette Bonaventure),
Pierre Vernier (Blache),
Maxime Leroux (Cloquet),
Gilles Privat (Paulin),
Catherine Salviat (Françoise Blindet),
Muriel Combeau (Nicole),
Alexandre Basse (Benjamine),
Aissatou Bah (Félicité),
Mamadou Bah (Désiré),
Marina M'Boa Ngong (Claire),
Sambou Tati (Aimé),
Nicolas Serreau (Fonctionnaire HLM),
Alain Tretout (Vidal),
Alain Fromager (Morton),
Isabelle Carré (Valérie),
Jean-Christophe Itier (Patrice),
Tadie Tuene (Otou),
Pascal N'Zonzi (Douta),
Emile Abossolo M'bo (Mari 2)
- Country: France
- Language: French
- Support: Color
- Runtime: 111 min
- Aka: Romuald & Juliette ;
Mama, There's a Man in Your Bed