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25 reviews in total

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14 out of 15 people found the following review useful:
"Little Devil" trapped in body of old lady -- Ultra-Dark Comedy!, 31 August 2005

Author: mdm-11 from United States

A film like "Tatie Danielle" is a welcome departure from the formula comedy-dramas out there focusing on the elderly members of our society. We're not dealing with another "Who will take care of Grandma" story, but are confronted with a real problem: This old lady is NOT the dear little Granny we know from story books. She isn't the type anyone would hate to ship off to a nursing home. She's the devil in disguise of a sweet old woman, who manipulates people around her to cause general unpleasantness.

In frequent moments of talking to herself (or rather her long-departed husband), Tatie Danielle fills us in on the "big picture". Apparently this woman has never worked or cared for herself. The widow of a high ranking military officer, living comfortably on a handsome pension, the old woman makes it her mission to terrorize anyone she encounters. The scene where a dear friend of many years dies because of Danielle's unreasonable demands to perform ridiculous cleaning chores shows the utter lack of compassion this woman has. Later she is party to abandoning an old family dog, more evidence of the cruelty within her.

Despite the roller-coaster ride of mean and spiteful behavior from an ungrateful, chronic malcontent, this film has many reflective moments, as well as a lot of good laughs. If you're put off by "Auntie Danielle's" mean cruelties, stick it out, because there is a big pay-off in the end, as well as a captivating story leading there. Not for everyone's taste, but certainly an excellent piece of International Cinema! The English subtitles are very efficient, giving just enough of the original French dialog to "translate" the meaning. Poor subtitles can spoil a foreign film, but an excellent job was done here!

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9 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
Tatie Danielle is delightfully evil!, 6 July 2005

Author: planktonrules from Bradenton, Florida

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Wow did I like this movie!! This is the story of a nasty old lady who treats everyone like her servants and pretty much hates everyone. She is not one of these cute or grandmotherly type old ladies, that's for sure! Her absolute awfulness is not reason enough to watch the movie--after all, it would hardly be engaging to JUST watch a movie of a horrible person. Instead, the writers really manipulate the viewer into ALMOST liking her or seeing something of value in this old crank--and THEN, she becomes even worse than you'd imagined! Its unrelenting cynicism is great. This movie reminded me of a much better written version of Problem Child with one MAJOR exception. In Problem Child, they had a cop-out ending when the rotten child's heart changed and he realized he really DID love his adopted dad. That NEVER rang true in Problem Child and Tatie Danielle never gives in to cheap sentimentality. It is funny and irreverent and very unusual to say the least.

I remember the tagline of the movie when it came out roughly translated to "you don't even know her but she hates you already". Wow--this really sums up the old crow!

By the way, what ever DID happen to the dog,....?

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9 out of 12 people found the following review useful:
Very unique, 27 August 2000

Author: Mario Bergeron from Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Canada

You have probably read the others viewers comments and you know that this woman Tatie Danielle is very very bad. But I think she's worst than that! In 99 % of the movies, old women are funny, or touching. Not desperados or delinquent. But Tatie is. Or worst... Despite that, this movie is also very sarcastic about middle class families, and a certain way of life. This is truly very unique, a real mastepiece of black humor. One of my favorite comic movie of all time. Let's hope Hollywood will never make a remake.

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8 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
this movie is brilliant, 14 February 2005

Author: dizzybuckteeth from Canada

This movie is brilliant. I would love to meet this aunt, or better, have this aunt. I wish all aunties were like her. She's the inner character inside of some of us -screaming out against all the algorithms by which one is supposed to live one's life by. She's a dissatisfied rebel. Her relationship with the paid housekeeper is one of the most touching I have ever seen in film. Very moving and deeply human. A great film for all who struggle and rebel. Tatie cuts through the crap!! The film is brilliantly acted and paced. The scenes of all the ordinary people doing their ordinary things are filmed with great compassion and tenderness. Which is why the ending of the film delivers such a great emotional punch line. This is a very memorable film. Everyone should have it in their library and show it to their children.

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5 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
May I be spared from meeting such a woman!, 29 November 1999

Author: raymond-15 from Australia

Tsilla Chelton gives a flawless performance as the cunning, scheming, mischievous old widow Auntie Danielle, She commands our attention in every scene and she is on the screen most of the time. Her aged housekeeper companion Odile is driven frantic by this cantankerous old shrew who insists she completes the most impossible and dangerous tasks such as cleaning the chandeliers. Her nephew and niece move in to look after her in her supposedly frail state of health and she makes life absolute hell for them, too. She has a framed photograph of her late husband Edouard hanging on the wall and she consults him on all her personal matters. I found these conversations highly amusing. The most entertaining part of the movie is when the relatives take off for Greece leaving Auntie Danielle under the care of a young woman employed to look after her. Sparks fly when these two obstinate individuals come face to face neither giving way to the other, The bed-wetting scene is quite a gem, but there are many other incidents which are equally amusing. The ending of the film in the Alps comes somewhat as a surprise as we see a complete transformation of Auntie. The spirited singing at the beginning and the end has nothing to do with the story, but I think it is a charming and original addition to a film which keeps you chuckling long after the credits have rolled.

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5 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
the old laughing lady, 11 September 2004

Author: dbdumonteil

Etienne Chatiliez can keep a cool head! After the commercial and critical success of "Life is a long quiet river" (1988), there must have been an immense pressure on him to make a second movie. Two years later, he resurfaced with a new feature-length film, "Tatie Danielle". At first sight, this film seems to be less original than its predecessor. It is nevertheless a fact that it is a funnier movie to watch and it shows once again Chatiliez's brilliant talent.

Etienne Chatiliez's strength comes from his skill at making laugh of a serious topic, always with a caustic and devastating humor. Furthermore, he always finds place to insert in it a little touch of social satire. These film-maker's particular gifts were already present in "life is a long quiet river". We find them again with pleasure in "Tatie Danielle" where the director is surpassing himself and is going further in daring. Roughly, he is having a tremendous time with the adventures of this old malicious lady who is going to make life impossible for her nephews. The movie is bursting with comical sequences and no-one makes sparks fly of powerful dialogs as well as Chatiliez does. Through the Billard family's trouble then Sandrine with "Tatie Danielle", a progressive tension grows which reaches its climax in the sequence when Tatie Danielle, hopeless after Sandrine's departure ransacks her nephews' flat and accuses them!

Like in "Life is a long quiet river", the contrast constitutes one of the author's main weapons. On one hand, Tatie Danielle, an old lady full of nastiness and on another hand, her nephews with an excessive kindness. It is useful to point out that the director makes a somewhat mocking description of his characters. For example, Tatie Danielle may be unbearable, she is also a very lonely old woman. She can only confide in her late husband. The latter is depicted in a photography and he is squinting! Through this characteristic, Chatiliez cocks a snook at her main character. On another hand, in the Billard family, the father and the children have got pretty much the same first name: Jean. A discreet way to laugh at this average French family

But Etienne Chatiliez has more than one string to his bow. Indeed, he also understood that sometimes it is better to use the power of suggestion to make particular moments successful. Thus, we learn that Tatie Danielle stirs up ill-feeling in the old people's home through the nurses and the head doctor's words.

And especially, especially, Chatiliez has got a sharp sense of observation. His movie abounds of little black ideas or details that irresistibly kick the bull's eye.

"Tatie Danielle" also proves one thing. Sometimes it is no-use hiring famous actors to secure the success of a movie. At the time of its release in 1990, nearly all the actors were virtually unknown. But Tsilla Chelton gives a flawless performance and it is a delight to see Isabelle Nanty subduing the tough octogenarian.

If we make an exception of some little weaknesses (Florence Quentin, the scriptwriter has forgotten to delete a few clichés linked to old people and there are some predictable sudden new developments), you come out elated of the projection of Etienne Chatiliez's intelligent and malicious second movie. He passes us on the pleasure he took in shooting this story. A really funny movie and there's no reason to deny oneself of it.

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A great black comedy, 6 March 2012

Author: djbabu_30 from Spain

From famous french director Etienne Chatillez this hilarious black comedy shows you the problems between old people and their relatives. 'Auntie Danielle'(Tsilla Chenton), an 82 years old widow with a malicious personality. After the accidental death of Odile (Neige Dolski) the housekeeper who has spend a life time taking care of her, Paris is her only destination. Her nephew Jean-Pierre (Eric Prat) and his wife Catherine (Catherine Jacob) decide to welcome the beloved auntie to their home in the big city. The old lady finds hard to accept the new conditions of living, which ends up in a difficulty and sometimes nasty behavior towards her family. When Jean-Pierre decides to take his wife and kids on summer holidays, Sandrine Vonnier (Isabelle Nanty) is employed to take care of the old lady. Their personalities clash in the beginning, but soon auntie Danielle realizes that Sandrine is a young version of herself. They start to form kind of friendship and the madame Bulliard seems to be happier and actually quite nice. Excellent performance by a former french theater actress Tsilla Chelton. Absolute must see for fans of black comedy. It will make you laugh until you cry.

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Great film on Middle class french family life., 1 February 2011

Author: jerbar2004 from United Kingdom

I can't think of how Holloywood would do a remake of the fine film of social manner "but" I hope they don't bother. The comedy never stops, Tatie Danielle is everyones favourite Aunt, we all love to hate her, and its not that difficult. One of my favourite scene is the bit when the "dog" gets dump in a Paris Street, (removing its collar, so that it can't be identified. The acting is very good. There are some very beautiful women in the film, including the young nurse in the hospital. The film is very French and one can learn a lot about the modern middle class in French today, just by looking at this film. Another plus, the film gets better with repeated viewing, and I have seen it about six or seven times already.

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2 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Must see therapy for those with mean relatives, 30 September 2005

Author: RMOba from dc

This should be a cult film for those with mean elderly relatives. We have recommended this to folks with hypercritical mothers, mothers-in-law, and others, who also said "She's mean." And nobody else believes them, because the relative can be just so nice to others. we've seen the little smirk that comes across her face when she makes somebody else suffer. She is also willing to suffer herself, if it means others suffer even more.

This film rings so true that it must have been based somebody's actual experience. Packaging family angst as a comedy probably wouldn't sell in Hollywood, so we have to pick this up from the French.

Cinematically, it's better than average, with notable performances from Tati and her niece and nephew.

It's charming and amusing to boot.

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2 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Anti Everything, 22 June 2005

Author: writers_reign

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Looking rather similar to Ruth Gordon Tsilla Chelton who takes the eponymous role here gives us a Master Class in Mischief if stopping short of downright evil. She is an amalgam of every irascible curmudgeon you've ever met and wished you hadn't and although it's difficult to discern a secondary meaning other than a Case History of the worst aspects of old age this is a film to be enjoyed as one enjoys a pile-up in a motor race safe in the knowledge that we don't indulge in Formula 1 so will never experience those thrills other than vicariously but most of us, on the other hand, will grow old and God forbid we run across a Tatie Danielle of our own. It's also good to see Karin Viard and Isabelle Nanty in early appearances displaying the promise we have now seen fulfilled. One to see again.

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