The Women on the 6th Floor (2010)

In 1960s Paris, a conservative couple's lives are turned upside down by a group of Spanish maids that live in the same building.

Director:

Philippe Le Guay

Writers:

Philippe Le Guay (scenario and dialogue), Jérôme Tonnerre (scenario and dialogue)

Stars:

Fabrice Luchini, Sandrine Kiberlain, Natalia Verbeke

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fabrice Luchini	...	Jean-Louis Joubert
Sandrine Kiberlain	...	Suzanne Joubert
Natalia Verbeke	...	María Gonzalez
Carmen Maura	...	Concepción Ramirez
Lola Dueñas	...	Carmen
Berta Ojea	...	Dolores Carbalan
Nuria Solé	...	Teresa
Concha Galán	...	Pilar
Marie-Armelle Deguy	...	Colette de Bergeret
Muriel Solvay	...	Nicole de Grandcourt
Audrey Fleurot	...	Bettina de Brossolette
Annie Mercier	...	Mme Triboulet
Michèle Gleizer	...	Germaine Bronech - la vieille bonne bretonne
Camille Gigot	...	Bertrand Joubert
Jean-Charles Deval	...	Olivier Joubert

Storyline

Paris, in the early 1960s. Jean-Louis Joubert is a serious but uptight stockbroker, married to Suzanne, a starchy class-conscious woman and father of two arrogant teenage boys, currently in a boarding school. The affluent man lives a steady yet boring life. At least until, due to fortuitous circumstances, Maria, the charming new maid at the service of Jean-Louis' family, makes him discover the servants' quarter on the sixth floor of the luxury building he owns and lives in. There live a crowd of lively Spanish maids who will help Jean-Louis to open to a new civilization and a new approach of life. In their company - and more precisely in the company of beautiful Maria - Jean-Louis will gradually become another man, a better man.

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Plot Keywords:

petty bourgeois | class differences | 1960s | strong female character | rich kid | 

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Taglines:

Help is on the way.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Philippe Le Guay took inspiration from his own childhood. His father was a stockbroker like Jean-Louis Joubert in the film and he himself had a Spanish maid.

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Goofs

In the street, most (if not all) men wear hats, caps or Basque berets. In France, most men stopped wearing headgear in the 1950s (in cities at least). By 1960, the vast majority of men were hatless.

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Connections

Featured in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #2.13 (2011)

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Soundtracks

Con las bombas que tiran
Manuel L. Quiroga (as Miguel Manuel Lopez Quiroga)
Rafael de León (as Rafael De Leon Arias De Saavedra)
Antonio Quintero (as Antonio Quintero Ramirez)
© tous droist réservés
(P) Vendome Production 2010

User Reviews

Friends with benefits: A Parisian Upstairs Downstairs

THE WOMEN ON THE 6TH FLOOR (Les femmes du 6ème étage) is a delightful bit of French pastiche that entertains while it also provides insight into several problems - immigration, class distinction, rich controlling poor, and the polar extremes of between the wealth and the working class. Fortunately the story as written by Jérôme Tonnerre and writer/director Philippe Le Guay takes place in the 1960s, offering the audience to glance back at period when social reforms were in the gestational phase and in doing so the film allows the comedy to reign - a fact that makes the reality eventually more poignant.

The story takes place in Paris in 1963 in an elegant neighborhood where Jean-Louis Joubert (Fabrice Luchini) is a serious but uptight stockbroker, married to Suzanne (Sandrine Kiberlain), a starchy class-conscious woman and father of two arrogant teenage boys, (Camille Gigot and Jean-Charles Deval) currently in a boarding school. Jean-Louis lives a steady yet boring life while Suanne busies herself with luncheon appointments, hair appointments, charities, etc. Jean-Louis' mother had been living with the Jouberts until her recent death and now Suzanne forces Jean-Louis to move all of the deceased woman's things to the attic on the 6th floor, an act that infuriates the longtime French maid Germaine (Michèle Gleizer) who leaves the household in disgust. Naturally everything deteriorates an Suzanne must find a new maid. She encounters Maria (Natalia Verbeke) recently immigrated from Spain, offers her a trial employment, and Maria, who becomes friends with the group of maids who live in the disgusting squalor of the 6th floor of the building: naturally these Spanish maids bond and help Maria bring the Joubert household to a state of perfection. Jean-Lois is thrilled with the new maid and discovers the other maids, hears their problems with the sewer and other poor conditions, and sets out to befriend these wonderful ladies who are living in his building : the redoubtable Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Berta Ojea, Nuria Solé, and Concha Galán. These lovely and deeply appreciative lively Spanish maids help Jean- Louis to become open to a new civilization and a new approach of life. In their company - and especially in the company of beautiful Maria - Jean-Louis will gradually become another man, a better man.

The acting is first rate, the subplots embroider the main story with fine finesse, and the sense of the transformation of one wealthy but emotionally vapid man into the loving charmer he becomes makes for a very fine comedy. The ending (three years later) is a bit vapid and cheapens the story quality, but by that time the audience is so entranced with this new vision of camaraderie that it matters little. This is a refreshing, well made, exceptionally entertaining film that boast a particularly fine cast of ensemble actors. In French and Spanish with English subtitles. Grady Harp, March 12

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany] Official site [Japan]

Country:

France

Language:

French Spanish

Release Date:

7 October 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Women on the 6th Floor

Filming Locations:

Chinchón, Madrid, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

EUR7,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$26,200, 9 October 2011

Gross USA:

$719,823

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$27,533,970

Company Credits

Production Co:

Vendôme Production, France 2 Cinéma, SND Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1