Alias Betty 2001  N/R, 101 min.
Genre: Foreign / Thriller
aka: Betty Fisher and Other Stories
Director: Claude Miller
Cast: Sandrine Kiberlain, Nicole Garcia, Mathilde Seigner, Luck Mervil, Edouard Baer, Stephane Freiss, Yves Jacques, Alexis Chatrian, Roschdy Zem, Consuelo De Haviland
In this suspense thriller, adapted from Ruth Rendell's "The Tree of Hands," several stories intertwine to exemplify aspects of motherhood when one child is kidnapped to replace another who has died.
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Dry Cleaning 1997  N/R, 97 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Anne Fontaine
Cast: Miou-Miou, Charles Berling, Stanislas Merhar, Mathilde Seigner, Nanou Meister, Noe Pflieger, Michel Bompoil, Christopher King, Gerard Blanc, Betty Petristy
A middle-aged couple, Nicole (Miou-Miou) and Jean-Marie Kunstler (Charles Berling), has been married 15 years and run a successful dry cleaning business, but life has become too routine UNTIL they take in Loic (Stanislas Merhar)–the brother part of a brother/sister drag queen act. Once Loic is in their home, he turns their lives inside out, which leads to the demise of everything Nicole and Jean-Marie have ever known.
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The Girl from Paris 2001 N/R, 103 min.
Genre: Foreign / Comedy
aka: One Swallow Brought Spring
Director: Christian Carion
Cast: Michel Serrault, Mathilde Seigner, Jean-Paul Roussillon, Frederic Pierrot, Marc Berman, Francoise Bette, Christophe Rossignon, Roland Chalosse, Achiles Francisco Varas Dell'Aquila, Henri Pasquale
A young Parisian, Sandrine (Mathilde Seigner), has bought a goat farm in the French Alps. But, the previous owner, Adrien (Michel Serrault), has a stipulation: Adrien will remain in the farmhouse for 18 months after the sale to provide guidance for running the farm. In the duration, Sandrine and Adrien learn to accept and even like each other.
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Portraits Chinois 1996 N/R, 110 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
aka: Shadow Play
Director: Martine Dugowson
Cast: Helena Bonham Carter, Romane Bohringer, Jean-Philippe Ecoffey, Marie Trintignant, Elsa Zylberstein, Yvan Attal, Sergio Castellitto, Miki Manojlovic, Jean-Claude Brialy, Mathilde Seigner
Complicated relationships can be found everywhere in this story of two costume designers–Ada (Helena Bonham Carter) and Lise (Romane Bohringer)–who work in Paris. Although there is not much insight into these two, the storyline is entertaining.
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Venus Beauty Institute 1999 N/R, 105 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Tonie Marshall
Cast: Nathalie Baye, Bulle Ogier, Samuel Le Bihan, Jacques Bonnaffe, Mathilde Seigner, Audrey Tautou, Robert Hossein, Elli Medeiros, Micheline Presle, Emmanuelle Riva
Madame Nadine (Bulle Ogier) and her employees–Angele (Nathalie Baye), Samantha (Mathilde Seigner), and Marie (Audrey Tautou)–at the Parisian Venus Beauty Institute make their customers feel better about themselves. But, at the same time, the beauticians suffer their own psychological ups and downs running the gamut from casual sex to jealousy to suicide. This film received four Cesars (French Oscars) for Best Picture, Screenplay, Director, and Young Actress.
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With a Friend Like Harry 2000 R, 117 min.
Genre: Foreign / Comedy
Director: Dominik Moll
Cast: Laurent Lucas, Sergi Lopez, Mathilde Seigner, Sophie Guillemin, Victoire de Koster, Dominique Rozan, Liliane Rovere, Michel Fau, Laurie Caminata, Lorena Caminata
Michel (Laurent Lucas) and Claire (Mathilde Seigner) need a vacation; their partially finished beach home seems like the perfect retreat for them and their three daughters. At a rest stop along the way, Michel runs into Harry (Sergi Lopez) who, according to Harry, was a school friend of Michel's. Michel doesn't remember him, but Harry remembers all the details of Michel's younger life. Almost instantly, Harry and his fiancee, Prune (Sophie Guillemin), install themselves in Michel's vacation home. They prove to be helpful–so helpful that matters turn eerie.
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| 1. Alias Betty (2001)
aka: Betty Fisher and Other Stories
2. Dry Cleaning (1997)
3. The Girl from Paris (2001)
aka: One Swallow Brought Spring
4. Portraits Chinois (1996)
aka: Shadow Play
5. Venus Beauty Institute (1999)
6. With a Friend Like Harry (2000)
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