British Film Festival
Screening now at Palace Cinemas
(Reviewed by John Glennie)
Eventalaide were invited to the premiere screening of this movie. I was dubious when I saw the title as not normally a movie I would see – but I was so pleased I did! My partner and I thoroughly enjoyed this feel-good movie. We were treated to the contrast between “common people” and the elite in England, and the snobbish attitude of French high-society.
It’s the 1950s and war widow Ada Harris (Lesley Manville) and her close friend and neighbour Violet Butterfield (Ellen Thomas) make ends meet by cleaning. Ada’s clientele are a mixed bag – a young bimbo trying to land an acting role, a gentleman who always has an attractive young “niece” staying at his apartment and a pompous lady who always comes up with an excuse not to pay Ava. However, Ava’s breath is taken away when she sees a stunning dress in the latter’s bedroom and discovers it is a couture Christian Dior which cost £500 (that would be many thousands in today’s money).
Owning a Christian Dior dress becomes Ava’s obsession and she saves every penny she can. When Violet drags her along to the dog races, Ava sees a dog with Couture in its name and believes it is a sign! She puts £100 on it, even though the bookie tries to dissuade her, saying it couldn’t win anything. The dog leads from the start but pulls up lame halfway through the race, and Ava’s dreams are shattered.
In a sudden twist of fate, a couple of days later, she receives three visitors within minutes of each other each with some positive news. With renewed vigour she starts saving again and finally, she is on a plane to Paris. Arriving late at night she ends up sharing a bench in a train station with some local homeless drunks. In the morning, one of them walks her into the city and shows her the House of Dior.
There is a crowd gathering and the red carpet has been laid out, and the strict manager Claudine Colbert (Isabelle Huppert) orders the security to keep everyone out except for the elite guests. When one of the models, Natasha (Alba Baptista) stumbles while running inside, Ava runs to help then chases after her when she realises the girl has dropped her handbag. By default she ends up at the room where the new gowns are to be displayed. Madame Colbert orders Ava to be thrown out. Ava protests at being called a common cleaning lady and pulls out rolls of cash to prove she is there to buy a Dior dress.
It seems to be futile until the charming Marquis de Chassagne comes to her rescue. Another prestigious guest, Madame Avallon (Guilaine Londez) and her daughter Mathilde are not happy being seated next to a commoner. After the show, Ava places her order for her dream dress and is ready to take it and catch her flight back to England. When she is told it could take up to a month, with multiple fittings, all seems lost as she doesn’t have anywhere to stay. The Dior accountant Andre Fauvel (Lucas Bravo) offers her his sister’s room – much to Madame Colbert’s disgust.
The movie succeeds because of the totally unique self-depracating British humour and the portrayal of French superiority and aloofness. For example, when being measured for her dress, the tailor says the “madame has the body of a model”, to which she replies “more like a model train set”. The French are very punctual and precise and Ava is devastated when told the tailor refuses to complete her dress because she was an hour late for a fitting.
It really seems like all the odds are stacked against her – will she ever get her dream Christian Dior dress? It is a long journey filled with ups and downs, but I really urge you to go to Palace Nova and see this wonderful film to see the eventual outcome.
No Comments