Review of Potiche (1983) by Ryan C — 29 May 2011

This little French tale about a trophy wife who breaks the mold and overtakes her husband's umbrella company to alarming success is a hodge-podge of 70s pastiche and gleeful humor that ultimately remains too carefree to really be considered good.

The focus of the movie was the clash of personalities and politics between the milieu of characters, but the writing is too cutesy to become biting and most of the jokes just pass over the surface of their interactions.

Beyond that, most of the dialogue brings new meaning to the term idle talk. However, what the movie succeeds in is underplaying its own wit - a sly reference to Rudyard Kipling's poem "If..." and the cheesy, luscious flashbacks that checker the movie are subtle enough to let the clever writing go unnoticed.

Finally, Claire Deneuve, who at this point is the go-to French actress for upper-class matriarchs, seems like she is having the time of her life playing the underdog for once, which at least makes her character a joy to watch.

Unfortunately the other characters don't give us that pleasure and mostly enter and leave on cue without leaving any sort of indent. In this case, colorful decor and charm can only carry a movie so far.