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The Housekeeper

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The Housekeeper (2003)

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Reviews Counted:59

Fresh:45

Rotten:14

Average Rating:6.5/10

Consensus: Nuanced performances and an understated tone make The Housekeeper transcend its familiar premise.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Jul 11, 2003 Limited

Box Office: $245,540

Synopsis: Claude Berri (JEAN DE FLORETTE, LUCIE AUBRAC) delivers yet another laudable entry on love and loneliness in UNE FEMME DE MENAGE. The story, written with efficiency and compassion, follows Jacques... Claude Berri (JEAN DE FLORETTE, LUCIE AUBRAC) delivers yet another laudable entry on love and loneliness in UNE FEMME DE MENAGE. The story, written with efficiency and compassion, follows Jacques (Jean-Pierre Bacri), a middle-aged sound producer unable to keep his apartment clean as he struggles to come to terms with his recent divorce. To solve the former, and unintentionally also the latter problem, he responds to an ad for a housekeeper. Laura (Émilie Dequenne), a beautiful girl in her twenties, answers Jacques' call and, needless to say, he hires her upon their first meeting, even despite the noticeable spots of dirt on her face. While a romance between the two appears inevitable, Berri keeps the story fresh by painting the lovers as alternately ambivalent and desirous. Eloquent photography draws the audience further into the narrative, with beatific landscapes of the French countryside, Paris, and the beach, as well as depictions of Jacques and Laura in romantic shadows, golden hour sunlight, and quiet Parisian silhouettes. French Director Catherine Breillat (ROMANCE) appears as Jacques' ex-wife Constance, providing the lighthearted and mostly comedic film with some needed gravity. Her presence suggests loneliness comes not from lack of love but as love's consequences. Even as Laura lifts Jacques from his doldrums, love remains the vice to which he is most vulnerable. This film was part of Rendez-Vous With French Cinema 2003 presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, Unifrance, and The French Film Office/Unifrance USA, together with French Cultural Services. [More]

Starring: Jean-Pierre Bacri, Emilie Dequenne, Brigitte Catillon, Jacques Frantz

Starring: Jean-Pierre Bacri, Emilie Dequenne, Brigitte Catillon, Jacques Frantz, Axelle Abbadie, Catherine Breillat

Director: Claude Berri

Director: Claude Berri
Screenwriter: Claude Berri
Story: Christian Oster
Producer: Claude Berri
Composer: Frederic Botton
Studio: Palm Pictures

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Nov 11, 2003

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Housekeeper

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
10/18/08
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
08/07/08
Mark Halverson
Mark Halverson
Sacramento News & Review

No review available.

comment Comment
08/13/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
07/21/05
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
07/05/05
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

I wouldn't want this Housekeeper around my house, but your mileage may vary.

Full Review Source: San Diego Metropolitan | comment Comment
04/23/05
Jean Lowerison
Jean Lowerison
San Diego Metropolitan

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
04/19/05
Greg Muskewitz
Greg Muskewitz
eFilmCritic.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/05/05
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

...possesses a shrewd understanding of the way human beings crave and pursue affection.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
01/27/05
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Dequenne fills the free-spirited role of Laura adequately enough. But there's precious little chemistry or understanding as to why she's attracted to Jacques…

Full Review Source: Las Vegas CityLife | comment Comment
05/21/04
Matt Kelemen
Matt Kelemen
Las Vegas CityLife
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: eye WEEKLY | comment Comment
01/15/04
Jason Anderson
Jason Anderson
eye WEEKLY

...a refreshing alternative to the myriad of overcranked stories churned out by Hollywood.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
12/21/03
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton make the life of a middle-aged single person look highly desirable. The Housekeeper doesn't deal in such delusions.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
12/19/03
Susan Walker
Susan Walker
Toronto Star
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's as if it's being told to you by a distracted middle-aged narrator who's looking at a beautiful college girl out of the corner of his eye.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
12/19/03
Jim Slotek
Jim Slotek
Jam! Movies

None of this is profoundly new, but the delicacy of the telling is well worth the experience.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
12/19/03
Liam Lacey
Liam Lacey
Globe and Mail
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Sells sex like how ice cream is hawked on a hot July day at the beach.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
12/02/03
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

A lovely film about sadness and mess, both inside and out, and how we are able to make ourselves feel better – temporarily

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
11/16/03
Marcy Dermansky
Marcy Dermansky
About.com

With their reverse-chemistry, [Bacri and Dequenne are] so good together -- hot and hilarious simultaneously -- that you'd think they'd been a team for ages.

Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel | comment Comment
11/07/03
Jay Boyar
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel

Both Bacri and Dequenne are surprisingly effective in their performances and manage to sell us on their chemistry.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
10/24/03
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Bacri and Dequenne fill out their underwritten roles, giving this small, unassuming story a few sparks.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
10/24/03
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune
 
 
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