Review of Potiche (1983) by Ollie W — 09 Oct 2011

When trophy housewife Suzanne's (Deneuve) husband (Luchini) suffers from a heart attack, she takes over his umbrella factory while he rests. The employees are striking because of his uncivilized ways, and Suzanne ends up fixing the problem.

She sides with her ex-lover (Depardieu), and before you know it, she's running for mayor. "Potiche" is the newest "A" film Deneuve's made in years (most of them have been the straight- to- video kind) and any fan of the French actress who's now 68 will love the newest she's made.

She teams up with one of her former directors, François Ozon, who she worked with in black comedy "8 Women", and then she has Gérard Depardieu as her leading man, who she has worked with several times including the drama "The Last Metro".

I think people who were big fans of the two stars will really enjoy this one, maybe even more than I did. "Potiche" is a biting satire on the seventies, and the film is funny throughout because it hits the mark perfectly on the past, from the goofy costumes to the oh-so '70's songs that headline it.

Those stay intact, but the humor, which is funny the first hour, loses the teeth in the second half and turns into a predictable dramady (the reason I deducted the stars). But all in all, it doesn't affect the film too much, considering so much of the movie is so well made.

"Potiche" is an entertaining satire that will really appeal to fans of the aging Deneuve more than anything, but it's a good movie to watch just for fun.