Shadows on the Wall | Widow Clicquot

Widow Clicquot

dir Thomas Napper
scr Erin Dignam
prd Christina Weiss Lurie, Haley Bennett, Joe Wright
with Haley Bennett, Tom Sturridge, Sam Riley, Ben Miles, Anson Boon, Leo Suter, Paul Rhys, Natasha O'Keeffe, Cara Seymour, Phoebe Nicholls, Nicholas Farrell, Ian Conningham
release US 19.Jul.24,
UK 23.Aug.24
23/UK 1h29

TORONTO FILM FEST

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Swirly and swoony, this biopic recounts the extraordinary life of Barbe-Nicole Clicquot, the grande dame of Champagne, as an early 19th century romantic melodrama. From the start, the film's whispery ambience is fairly relentless, relying on dreamy flashbacks and earnest voiceovers that heighten the pinched emotions and pointed gender politics. Yes, it's all rather stoic, but it's also beautifully assembled, and the plot moves briskly, holding the interest.

As a 27-year-old widow, Barbe-Nicole (Bennett) rejects a buyout from her father-in-law Phillipe (Miles) due to memories of her beloved late husband Francois (Sturridge), who wanted her to stay on and run the family vineyard. Her modern ideas clash with Phillipe and the estate's managers, who are stuck in the old ways, so lusty wine seller Louis (Riley) helps her navigate as a woman in a man's world. As her inventive process produces results, the threats against her escalate. But of course Veuve (French for widow) Clicquot remains a top Champagne to this day.

Lush design catches the eye, while Caroline Champetier's softly glowing cinematography, Bryce Dessner's strings-heavy score and Richard Marizy's non-linear editing add surging passions to what is essentially a straightforward tale of a strong, intelligent woman who succeeds in a culture that's stacked against her. Continually cutting to wistful memories of her life with the sweet but unstable Francois, there's a strong sense of what's at stake for Barbe-Nicole, and why transforming this business is so important to her.

With a resolutely stony face, Bennett still manages to give a yearning performance that flickers back and forth between Barbe-Nicole's marriage and the tenacity, skill and innovation that revolutionised the wine industry in Champagne. She has strong chemistry with the expressive Sturridge in a complex role that requires big emoting. And her scenes with Riley's earthier Louis have a nice edge to them.

While the film feels overly reverent, and its impressionistic storytelling style may alienate some viewers, this is a timely account of a woman who is told she must project power when she would rather foster an environment based on collaboration. And the flashbacks reveal intriguing angles on loving someone with mental illness issues. So even if the narrative feels both overwrought and undercooked, the important themes resonate.

themes, sexuality 15.Jul.24

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