THE HOUSEKEEPER
Directed by: Claude Berri.
Produced by: Berri.
Written by: Berri, adapted from the novel Une Femme de Ménage by Christian Oster.
Director of Photography: Eric Gautier.
Edited by: François Gédigier.
Music by: Frédéric Botton.
Released by: Palm Pictures.
Country of Origin: France. 91 min. Not Rated.
With: Jean-Pierre Bacri & Émilie Dequenne.
DVD Special Features: Making of Featurette. Trailers. Weblinks.

The Housekeeper tells the poignant story of Jacques and Laura, two lonely people drawn to each other for all the wrong, but entirely understandable reasons. When we first encounter Jacques, (played with endearing earnestness by Bacri) he is in his apartment, shrouded in darkness: The apartment is a mess and so is his life. After responding to an ad for a housecleaner, he is pleased to discover that the applicant is a young pretty woman. Once Laura (the refreshingly engaging Dequenne) begins working for Jacques, not only does his apartment begin to brighten, but his own pallor seems to as well. In turn, there is a sadness and neediness in Laura that is wholly palpable. Soon she is asking Jacques to move in with him after she and her boyfriend break up. Reluctantly, Jacques agrees (“only for a few days”) and the two settle into a peculiar sort of complacent domesticity: She happily cooks and cleans; he is disappointed if she is not there to greet him when he arrives. The contrast between the two verges on the comical; he vainly tries to listen to classical music as she cleans to blaring pop music. Out of their mutual dependency, a sexual relationship begins to develop and while many may be put-off by another clichéd tale of a middle-aged man taking up with a girl half his age, one can understand why the two enter into this doomed relationship. Since we know the ending, the film tends to feel drawn out at times. However, the actors do a fine job of portraying their characters with a sincerity and subtlety that makes them all too human. Tanya Chesterfield, Book Reviewer (Barnes & Noble.com)
July 11, 2003