Potiche (2010)

When her husband is taken hostage by his striking employees, a trophy wife (Deneuve) takes the reins of the family business and proves to be a remarkably effective leader. Business and ... See full summary »

Director:

François Ozon

Writers:

François Ozon (scenario), Pierre Barillet (play),

Stars:

Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, Fabrice Luchini

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Catherine Deneuve	...	Suzanne Pujol
Gérard Depardieu	...	Maurice Babin
Fabrice Luchini	...	Robert Pujol
Karin Viard	...	Nadège Dumoulin
Judith Godrèche	...	Joëlle Pujol de la Morette
Jérémie Renier	...	Laurent Pujol (as Jérémie Rénier)
Sergi López	...	Le routier espagnol (as Sergi Lopez)
Évelyne Dandry	...	Geneviève Michonneau
Bruno Lochet	...	André Ferron (le syndicaliste)
Elodie Frégé	...	Suzanne jeune
Gautier About	...	Babin jeune
Jean-Baptiste Shelmerdine	...	Robert jeune
Noam Charlier	...	Flavien
Martin De Myttenaere	...	Stanislas
Yannick Schmitz	...	Jean-François

Storyline

When her husband is taken hostage by his striking employees, a trophy wife (Deneuve) takes the reins of the family business and proves to be a remarkably effective leader. Business and personal complications arrive in the form of her ex-lover (Depardieu), a former union leader.

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Plot Keywords:

factory | hostage | umbrella | ex lover | marriage | 

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Taglines:

France, 1977: Women's Liberation is in the air.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Music Box Films [us] Official site

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

10 November 2010 (France)

Also Known As:

Potiche (Trophy Wife)

Filming Locations:

Anderlecht, Brussels, Brussels-Capital, Belgium

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$86,017 (USA) (25 March 2011)

Gross:

$1,618,844 (USA) (29 July 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mandarin Films, FOZ, France 2 Cinéma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A trailer for this film is used in UK cinemas as part of the "Don't let mobile phones spoil your film" campaign run by the telecoms company Orange. The English subtitles have been replaced with new phone-related dialogue and the music in the disco sequence is replaced with a ringtone version.

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Goofs

A Renault 4 GTL is seen in the background. This version, with gray bumpers, was introduced in 1978, while the film is set in 1977.

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Connections

Version of Potiche (1983)

User Reviews

So polished, 3 or 4 trailers would have done the job. Kind of like visiting a small pantheon of contemporary French acting Gods in a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Review of POTICHE (Trophy Wife) The Good

It's a a frothy comedy, but managed to touch upon complex issues of gender, personal triumph and defeat, marriage crisis, ideologies and political dynamics intertwined with personal lives. It's done so without getting heavy, almost effortless, making the viewing experience a delight.

Suzanne Pujol is another star vehicle for Catherine Deneuve. And no matter how many times I've seen this, and regardless of her age, she seems to deserve it as her birth right. Deneuve bounced off descent performances by a star line-up of half of the who's who in French cinema including the likes of Gérard Depardieu, and it was fun to watch.

The plot and the ending are not over the top, though very polished still somewhat true to life. Easy said than done for a personal triumph story in a light comedy.

The Bad

Deneuve seems to be having so much fun in her role, but I never quite cared as much. At more than one occasions, their performance may appear effortless at first, but getting thin and tiring quickly. The characters' youthful indiscretions, twists and turns in the plots seem to be strong spices without good food to cling on to.

The Ugly

It is so polished that, at times, I feel three or four short trailers would have done the job. Kind of like visiting a small pantheon of contemporary French acting Gods in a lazy Sun afternoon.