Potiche

Based on a play by Pierre Barillet and Jean-Pierre Grédy, Potiche follows Catherine Deneuve’s Suzanne Pujol, the trophy wife of a successful businessman (Fabrice Luchini’s Robert), as she reluctantly agrees to take the reins of her husband’s umbrella company – with Suzanne’s newfound power inevitably shaking her out of her drab, housebound day-to-day existence. Filmmaker François Ozon has infused Potiche with a pervasively lighthearted feel that’s reflected in everything from the comedically-twinged performances to its unapologetically garish sets, with the heavily-stylized atmosphere certainly proving instrumental at initially capturing the viewer’s interest. The preponderance of likeable characters goes a long way towards allaying the relentless quirkiness of Ozon’s modus operandi, and there’s little doubt that the film’s complete and utter lack of laughs is, at the outset, not as problematic as one might’ve feared. (It’s worth noting that Potiche, though billed as a comedy, boasts only one genuinely hilarious moment, as Robert delivers a truly remarkable spit take after receiving some unexpected news from Suzanne.) There comes a point, however, at which the movie begins to demonstrably run out of steam, with the progressively uninvolving atmosphere compounded by an overlong running time and an erratic sense of pacing. Ozon’s reluctance to introduce elements of a dramatic or authentic nature effectively cements Potiche‘s downfall, as the blithe atmosphere becomes nothing short of oppressive once the film enters its nigh interminable third act. The end result is a failed farce that seems unlikely to please even Ozon’s most ardent fans, although, to be fair, it’s hard to deny the effectiveness of Deneuve’s consistently watchable turn as the movie’s familiar protagonist.

** out of ****