Released: 2nd April 2021 (Netflix)
Length: 112 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Director: Sylvie Verheyde
Starring: Karole Rocher, Roschdy Zem, Garance Marillier and Pierre Deladonchamps
A major player in 1960s Paris, the infamous Madame Claude had quite the impact on wider society. Previously a 1977 biographical film told the story of her life and the same is true of this new 2021 effort. Unfortunately, it will be remembered far more for its disappointments than its few acceptable elements.
Madame Claude follows the titular character and her employees as she constructs a monopoly on prostitution that reaches into the higher-ups of French society. For almost a decade, she was able to run a lucrative business without issue, that is until her political connections caught up with her. What could have been a unique character study feels incredibly shallow in this movie. Much of the runtime is dedicated to the characters either hanging out in various bars or sleeping with those they have seduced. While both are appropriate subject matters for this story, Madame Claude frequently misses the context behind these moments. The question of how and why the women were drawn to this line of work are rarely discussed as the film chooses to shuffle from one event to the next. Even when Claude finds herself working on behalf of the French secret service, a sense of intrigue struggles to build. The sense of progression is very lacking and as a result, the narrations from Claude herself also fail to engage.
The performances are mildly effective, but they beg for a deeper script. Karole Rocher is serviceable in the lead role. There’s a sense of bitterness that hangs over her character; having been let down by serious relationships before, she instead turns towards her own more illicit business model. Unfortunately, outside of this character trait, the lead protagonist is rarely worth empathising with. Early on, the film establishes a kind of mother-daughter relationship between her and brothel newcomer Sidonie (Garance Marillier) who also forges connections with politicians and the secret service. The film could have drawn out a contrast between Sidonie and Claude’s own daughter; yet because the contact between the protagonist and the latter is so minimal, you’ll have a hard time getting invested. The other members of the brothel are equally underused; once they’ve had their initial appraisal from the Madame, they’re mostly left to the background. Once again, the film misses an opportunity to delve into the psychological impact of their work. Instead, it focuses mostly on the occasionally abusive customer and nothing more.
1960s Paris is represented on a fairly contained and minimalistic effort in Madame Claude. The flick relies heavily on its sets and costume design to convey the setting. For the most part this does work; Claude’s troupe is often defined by the exotic costumes they wear to impress potential clients. The camerawork takes on a fairly intimate lens throughout, but on occasion it did become too frantic with its cuts, particularly during some dialogue sequences. One element that stuck out for the wrong reasons was the use of synths. Through much of the film, traditional music of the time period is used. But on occasion the more modern instrument is used in a bid to create a more serene atmosphere. It doesn’t work very well considering the production's aims of authentic representation.
Madame Claude’s severe limitations in both story and character connections drag it down massively. What we’re left with is an incredibly hollow production that alternates between scenes of partying and sensual encounters without much depth or wider contribution. Claude’s story may be an intriguing one, but this film falls very short of making a compelling biopic.
Rating: 2/5 Stars (Disappointing)
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