Avenue Montaigne (2006)
"Fauteuils d'orchestre" (original title)

A young woman arrives in Paris where she finds a job as a waitress in bar next on Avenue Montaigne that caters to the surrounding theaters and the wealthy inhabitants of the area. She will meet a pianist, a famous actress and a great art collector, and become acquainted with the "luxurious" world her grandmother has told her about since her childhood.

Director:

Danièle Thompson

Writers:

Danièle Thompson (screenplay), Christopher Thompson (screenplay),

Stars:

Valérie Lemercier, Cécile De France, Albert Dupontel

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Valérie Lemercier	...	Catherine Versen
Cécile De France	...	Jessica
Albert Dupontel	...	Jean-François Lefort
Claude Brasseur	...	Jacques Grumberg
Christopher Thompson	...	Frédéric Grumberg
Dani	...	Claudie
Laura Morante	...	Valentine Lefort
Suzanne Flon	...	Madame Roux
Sydney Pollack	...	Brian Sobinsky
François Rollin	...	Marcel
Guillaume Gallienne	...	Pascal
Annelise Hesme	...	Valérie
Françoise Lépine	...	Magali Garrel
Michel Vuillermoz	...	Félix
Daniel Benoin	...	Daniel Bercoff

Storyline

Jessica, raised by her grandmother, comes to Paris and gets a job at a bar across from a performance complex where a play, a concert, and an art auction will occur the same evening. It's a world in flux: the play's star wants off a popular TV soap that's made her rich, and she covets the lead in a film about de Beauvoir and Sartre; the pianist hates the concert circuit, but his wife who's his manager may leave him if he quits; a self-made widower with a girlfriend less than half his age is selling his collection of modern art - his son, a professor, objects to his father's love life. The stage manager at the complex is resigning after 30 years. Jessica sets the tone for how all plays out.

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Plot Keywords:

concert | manager | bar | pianist | waitress | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some strong language and brief sexuality

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French English Japanese

Release Date:

15 February 2006 (France)

Also Known As:

Avenue Montaigne

Filming Locations:

15 - Théâtre des Champs Elysées, Avenue Montaigne, Paris 8, Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

€8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$37,677 (USA) (16 February 2007)

Gross:

$2,044,614 (USA) (20 July 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Thelma Films, StudioCanal, TF1 Films Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min 100 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Visa d'exploitation en France # 112436

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Goofs

When Dupontel (Jean-François Lefort) gives his concert and takes off his shirt and jacket they change places, first in front of the long end of the piano then in the next cut much closer to the keyboard end.

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Crazy Credits

Before end credits: "À Suzanne" (dedicated to Suzanne Flon who died at 87 shortly after filming was completed), as we hear an off-screen quote by her - taken from earlier in the film - where the elderly character she plays serenely states that she had a good life.

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Connections

References Star Academy (2002)

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Soundtracks

"La solitude ça n'existe pas"
Words by Pierre Delanoë
Music by Gilbert Bécaud (1970)
Performed by Gilbert Bécaud

User Reviews

Go and see it

As in most of the best French films, not a lot happens and people spend a lot of time talking about their problems but somehow it works. The central character played by Cecile de France is largely a ficelle designed to link together the subplots. Each of these involves an apparently enviable character - someone who's apparently got it made - who isn't as happy as he (or she) should be. The malaises of these rich and glitzy characters turn out to be universal human problems - ageing, family strife, boredom. One of the major themes of the film, beautifully woven through all the subplots, is that we should theorise about life (and art) less and respond to life (and art) in an emotionally direct way. Ergo I shall simply say I enjoyed it, I didn't get a numb behind and I was happier after I came out than when I went in. It's worth the price of admission for the Sidney Pollack restaurant scene alone.