City Reels: Vancouver’s Independent Cinema Guide

Potiche

In French, a potiche is a vase or decorative object of little value and no real practical use that you put on a shelf or a mantel. The word is also used in everyday language as a derogatory term for a woman who is considered eye candy, or a woman living in the shadow of her husband who doesn’t seem to have her own identity. Certain wives of politicians, or even certain female politicians themselves, have been called “potiches”, including Madame Chirac, or more recently, Segolene Royal.

Set in 1977 in a provincial French town, Potiche is a free adaptation of the eponymous hit comic play. Catherine Deneuve is Suzanne Pujol, a submissive housebound ‘trophy housewife’ (or ‘potiche’) who steps in to manage her wealthy and tyrannical husband (Fabrice Luchini)’s umbrella factory after the workers go on strike and take him hostage.

To everyone’s surprise, Suzanne proves herself a competent and assertive woman of action. But when her husband returns from a restful cruise in top form, things get complicated.

Gerard Depardieu plays a former union leader and Suzanne’s ex-beau who still holds a flame for her. Acclaimed writer-director Francois Ozon (“Swimming Pool,” “Under the Sand,” “Time to Leave,”) who had previously directed Ms. Deneuve in the international hit “8 Women,” twists the original play on its head to create his own satirical and hilarious take on the war between the sexes and classes.

“I’d been wanting to make a film about women’s place in society and politics for a long time,” says director Francois Ozon.

“When I saw the play Potiche by Barillet and Gredy, I immediately thought it was great material for a film. But it took me a long time to make it mine, to figure out how to adapt and modernize it. I felt I could achieve the tone and verve of screwball comedies, but I didn’t want to end up making a backward-looking film, disconnected from reality.”

“There were two catalysts for launching the project. First, meeting the Altmayer brothers, producers, who proposed I do a political film about Nicolas Sarkozy in the spirit of Stephen Frears’ The Queen. Second, the 2007 presidential elections in France, during which I followed Segolene Royal’s campaign with interest.”

• Opens Friday May 13th at Fifth Avenue Cinemas