Cinemania 2012: A Lady in Paris

Une Estonienne à Paris 

2012/ Colour / 94 min / France-Belgium-Estonia 

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director: Ilmar Raag 
Scriptwriter: Imar Ragg 
Producers: Entre Chien et Loup, Le Parti Production, Amrion Ou
Cast: Jeanne Moreau, Laine Magi, Fabrice Colson, Patrick Pineau
Sales: Pyramid International 

Jeanne Moreau, at 84, delivers an astonishing performance in this film by an Estonian film director Imar Raag. It is as if her acting talent has now matured to a full blossom. Her portrayal of the taciturn Frida, an Estonian émigré in her eighties, living alone in Paris, as well as her equally superb portrayal of a neighbour who comes for a visit in the film discussed in my preceding post below Cinemania 2012: Gebo and the Shadow, shows that the true talent never dies but if properly cultivated can even get much better as the years pass by. There is therefore no need for aging actors to complain that they cannot get roles to play because of their age. If they are not chosen for any roles it simply means they lack true talent and/or the ability to make their acting skills grow as they progress in age.

 The film treats with fineness the issues of the advanced age and the inability to care fully for oneself, and shows the ensuing tensions, despair, and frustrations. It also portrays the difficulties of those with the immigrant background, how they choose to cope with their new lives in a new country, and how they treat and judge each other within their ethnic community. Old hurts never seems to heal, but the new relationships are possible. This  as is the case of Frida and her new caregiver Anne (masterfully portrayed by Laine Magi) who comes from Estonia to take care of Frida, having never been to France before.

The film shows a triumph of warmth in human relationships that succeeds to replace the prior coldness and meanness.