In this gentle French comedy, Gérard Depardieu stars as genial construction worker Germain Chazes. Although he enjoys spending time with his sexy bus-driver girlfriend and sipping wine at a local cafe, Germain is essentially a lonely man. Living in a small trailer near his mother's house, he dutifully nurtures his vegetable garden, growing produce that brings in extra income at farmers' markets. In flashbacks, we learn that Germain was a slow-witted child who was often verbally abused by his shrewish mother (played at different ages by Anne Le Guernec and Claire Maurier), as well as insensitive teachers and classmates at school. One afternoon, while feeding pigeons in the park, Germain meets Margueritte (Gisèle Casadesus), a fragile, elderly woman who has been living in a nearby retirement home but now faces an uncertain future because her uncaring family is no longer willing to foot the bill. Margueritte is an avid reader, while Germain—being almost functionally illiterate—is intimidated by the written word. Yet soon Margueritte is reading aloud to him, patiently explaining and repeating particular phrases that he doesn't understand, and before long, they're conversing regularly, enabling him to surprise his bistro buddies with erudite references to the work of Albert Camus and Romain Gary. Adapted from Marie-Sabine Roger's popular novel, director Jean Becker's My Afternoons with Margueritte is a sweetly sentimental film anchored by two strong central performances from Depardieu (who captures Germain's working-class essence, imbuing him with poignant kindness and provincial humor) and 97-year-old Casadesus. Recommended. (S. Granger)
My Afternoons with Margueritte
New Video, 82 min., in French w/English subtitles, not rated, DVD: $29.95, Blu-ray: $34.95, June 19 Volume 27, Issue 3
My Afternoons with Margueritte
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