Souvenir 2016

     Lilliane used to be the singer Laura.  She was let down by her husband/manager and her career was left by the wayside.  She now works in a French pate-factory.  She meets Jean, he works at the factory and he does the baking of the pate.  Jean adds garnishes after the pate comes out of the oven.  Jean sees film footage of Laura on a television program and he asks Lilliane about it the next day at work.  Lilliane denies that she was ever Laura.  Jean and Lilliane become friends and she admits that she is Laura.  Jean invites her to go to a presentation put on by his boxing club.  This appearance leads to Laura entering a television singing competition and Jean is her manager.   

     Everything is going well with Jean as her manager and Laura hopes to win the contest.  She contacts Tony Jones, her former husband and manager.  She needs new material and Tony is also a songwriter.  When Jean learns that Tony is now involved again in Laura’s career, he become very angry!!  I thought this was interesting and good.  Isabelle Huppert does well in the singing and I don’t think this aspect has been a part of her career.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

90 min, Drama directed by Bavo Defurne with Isabelle Huppert, Kevin Azais, Johan Leysen, Muriel Bersy, Fanny Blanchard, Benjamin Boutboul, Anne Brionne, Thomas Coumans, Christiane Dargenton, Joel Delsaut, Thorunn Egilsdottir, Carlo Ferrante, Jan Hammenecker, Mickey Hardt.

Note:  Imdb 6 out of 10, Rotten Tomatoes 48% critic 38% audience, Roger Ebert 2 ½*, RollingStone 3 ½* Peter Travers, Metacritic 54 out of 100 with 11 critics, The Guardian 3* out of 5* Benjamin Lee, Slant Magazine 1 ½* out of 4* Diego Semerene.

Special Note:  There is another film titled The Souvenir of 2019. Belgium Director and writer Bavo Defurne encourages his cast and crew to transform the story material into a visually beautiful and expressive tale.  His debut feature North Sea Texas was released in 2012 and it became a Netflix favorite.