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Review

A star rating of 3 out of 5.

Maggie Smith capitalises on the success of TV's Downton Abbey here, playing another wealthy old dowager, Madame Girard, in a comedy drama adapted by writer/director Israel Horovitz from his own play. However, Girard's stiff upper lip conceals some loose morals, which are gradually revealed when smart-mouthed New Yorker Mathias Gold (Kevin Kline) comes to take possession of her grand Parisian home. He's dismayed to find that, in accordance with an antiquated French law, he is obliged to let Girard live out her days in the property, which has been bequeathed to him by his father. So begins a series of attempts to get rid of his unwelcome tenant. Smith and Kline have excellent chemistry but, although Kristin Scott Thomas is on good form as Girard's brittle but attractive daughter, her scenes with Kline aren't as much fun. Skeletons tumble out of the closet in rather a clumsy fashion, so it's just as well that Horovitz has managed to attract a refined cast who are able to put some meat on those old bones.

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Credits

Cast

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Mathilde GirardMaggie Smith
Mathias GoldKevin Kline
Chloé GirardKristin Scott Thomas
Monsieur LefebvreDominique Pinon
François RoyStéphane Freiss
Dr Florence HorowitzNoémie Lvovsky

Crew

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DirectorIsrael Horovitz

Details

Theatrical distributor
Curzon Film World
Released on
2014-11-21
Languages
English | Italian | French
Guidance
some swearing, sexual references
Available on
DVD and Blu-ray
Formats
Colour
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