By Linda Winsh-Bolard
Juliette Binoche is returning to her "roots" in Another Woman's Life in less interesting but very similar story to the one that made her career. In Krzystof Kieslowski' s White, she was the wife who left her good for nothing husband, to re-discover a capable man who punished her for not standing by him.
In Another Woman's Life Binoche, now more mature, is Marie Speranski.
Young Marie fell for her husband Paul the moment she saw him at the beach. She was then a poor girl on her way up while he was the son of a rich investor.
Fifteen years go by and Marie wakes up with no memory of them to re-discover who she is, and what her life was like in the past decade and a half.
The Speranski's are now very rich, result of Marie's reckless ambition and hard work in her father in law's firm, have a son and face a divorce.
Marie's father is dead and she accusing her mother of conspiracy to murder him.
She might have a lover and perhaps Paul has one as well, the very same enchanting Jean whom Marie remembers from the day on the beach.
Unencumbered by mundane things like employment, money, cleaning and such, and apparently with wizzarding talent to master all the technology of the last 15 years, that she claims to have no memory of at all ( she certainly forgot all the small social niceties like how to consume a diner in a restaurant), Marie sets to win Paul over again.
That is it.
You'd have to think very deep to contemplate that maybe Paul's apparent lack of money bringing career, he is just about to publish the comics he worked on when he met Marie, might have something to do with Marie's career obsession.
Sylvie Testud presents Marie as a woman who lost her way, her only fulfillment needs to be love and family; the private school fees and apartments somehow don't come into it.
Testud is no Kieslowski. Occasionally, I regret the fame and power of Francis Coppola; without those Sophia Coppola would never have made number of films about the poor rich girl who so lacks love. Even had she made them, no one would have paid any attention to them and perhaps other women would make more interesting films.
Testud made a classical chick movie, the kind that usually gets made when the economic and social situation is stable. That really is the only amazing thing about Another Woman's Life; while the crisis is on, leaving many women desperate, Testud is fully wrapped in the luxury of the past and present 1%.
Nicely shot, adequately delivered and utterly forgettable.
Directed by Sylvie Testud based on novel by Frederique Deghelt, Screenplay:, Claire Lemar???chal,Stars:Juliette Binoche, Mathieu Kassovitz, Aure Atika, Marie-Christie Adam, Didier Raymond and others.
