Review: My Afternoon with Margueritte

The title My Afternoons with Margueritte describes sessions in the park over which the eponymous 95-year-old woman (Gisèle Casadesus) teaches the 60-something, functionally illiterate oaf Germain (Gérard Depardieu) how to read with confidence. Germain was abused as a child by his mother–flashbacks ensue–so he latches on to Margueritte to experience the maternal love he always deserved but never received. As you might have guessed by now, the movie is filled to the brim with saccharine clichés that would be excessive even in Hollywood. But because co-writer/director Jean Becker takes risks with the details, My Afternoons with Margueritte mostly works. For instance, Germain has the anger issues that an untreated man of his traumatic upbringing would in real-life; as often as he is used as a pudgy, sympathetic narrative ploy, his fleeting moments of furor remind the audience that he is not a caricature. Depardieu’s fine performance helps. Likewise, Margueritte is not your average sweet old lady; only the Europeans would dare allow a near-centurion with thoroughly rotted teeth a lead role. Lastly, the movie’s technical aspects are top-notch — cinematographer Arthur Cloquet proves that artful CinemaScope is not simply the domain of blockbusters. Unfortunately, the film makes fatal missteps in its third act, when Germain takes artificially climactic steps to save his love affair with Margueritte when she is sent away to another nursing home. The final shot, especially, is downright patronizing of the audience, betraying the modest treasures that came before.

* * *

My Afternoons with Margueritte (2011, France). Produced by Louis Becker and Gérard Depardieu. Directed by Jean Becker. Written for the screen by Jean Becker and Jean-Loup Dabadie, based on the book by Marie-Sabine Roger. Starring Gérard Depardieu, Gisèle Casadesus, Maurane, Patrick Bouchitey, and Jean-François Stèvenin. Distributed by Cohen Media Group. Not rated, with a running time of 82 minutes.