Dominique Blanc Movies
- 1993
Zena (Dominique Blanc) lost her parents as a very young girl, and though she was born in Albania, only knows about life in Paris. She was raised by her uncle Selman (Sulejman Pitarka), whom she is about to leave behind in order to start a new life in New York. Just before she leave, however, she hears of an Albanian who is being detained by French authorities for want of the proper paperwork. Ordinarily, that would not capture her attention. However, Vladimir (Timo Flloko), who is the man in question, claims to have information that Zena's father is not dead, and could be located. Zena postpones her trip to speak with Vladimir and, once he is free to travel, they begin to try and explore his information. There is only one problem in their traveling around France together: he doesn't speak a word of French, and she doesn't speak a word of Albanian. Somehow, they manage to communicate, and they eventually become lovers. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dominique Blanc
Regis Wargnier's epic about French Indochina -- from the years of French colonial imperialism to the days when American presence made itself felt and the country became known as Vietnam -- is a story of romance and separation told through the backdrop of a country in turmoil. The film centers on the relationship of the beautiful and imperious Eliane (Catherine Deneuve), a French rubber-plantation owner, and Camille (Linh Dan Pham), her adopted Indochinese daughter. The mother and daughter are very close until a diffident naval officer, Jean-Baptiste (Vincent Perez) enters their lives. Eliane is in love with him, but Jean-Baptiste and Camille become attracted to each other and fall in love. Thinking that she is doing Camille a favor, Eliane arranges to have Jean-Baptiste transferred to the far-away Tonkin Islands. But Camille flees the plantation to go to the man she loves. As she travels the country, she gains a greater knowledge and respect for the people of her homeland. When the government tears her from Jean-Baptiste and their infant child and arrests her for crimes against the state, she becomes politicized and becomes a supporter of the communists in the country's civil war. As the country rocks in turmoil, Eliane becomes a personification of France, coolly walking amid her peasant workers, neither bowed nor afraid, grimly looking westward. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Catherine Deneuve, Vincent Perez, (more)
- 1992
In this earnest drama, a rural schoolteacher who has become a strong advocate for ecological awareness and is a committed opponent of hunting in the local swamp becomes romantically embroiled with a single mother who has returned to her birthplace since just before her boy (now nine years old) was born. Despite some hard feelings from the adult population of the town (who are very pro-hunting), the teacher's romance progresses smoothly until he learns that his girlfriend's brother stuffs and mounts specimens of endangered species. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tchéky Karyo, Dominique Blanc, (more)
- 1991
Flo is just thirteen and is away from home on vacation. Her mother Clo, her sister Jo, and her relative Do, are all very liberated women, very wealthy, and very determined to have their way. When they catch sight of Guillaume de Burlador (Pierre Arditi), a handsome, well-educated and somewhat needy young man, they lure him into their peculiar ménage by offering him the job of becoming Flo's tutor. What they really want is to take him to bed in the crudest possible way. Unfortunately for the young man he is a true romantic and wants to be wooed in addition to having lots of hot sex. Since this feminist bedroom comedy turns many conventions on their ear, it is completely in keeping with the spirit of the piece that all the bedroom scenes, while occasionally quite erotic, take place between people who are fully clothed. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Arditi, Françoise Fabian, (more)
- 1990
- R
This comic excursion from Louis Malle is set in May 1968, concurrent with a series of Parisian student uprisings. After the death of family matriarch Mme. Vieuzac (Paulette Dubost), the survivors converge on the French countryside for her funeral; they include her two sons, Milou (Michel Piccoli) and Georges (Michel Duchaussoy); Camille (Miou-Miou), Milou's daughter; Camille's husband and children; and granddaughter Claire (Dominique Blanc), a lesbian. With the latest news of rebellion from Paris as their soundtrack, the family members argue over property, revive long-simmering arguments, and watch in dismay as an unlikely love affair begins. When the student uprising threatens to spill over into their community, the family heads for the hills, where the great outdoors only intensifies their reunion. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Piccoli, Miou-Miou, (more)
- 1989
When his widowed father M. Bread (Jean Rochefort) hires Mme Vernet (Dominique Blanc) to be his governess to look after him, and she brings along her son (who is the same age) to provide him with a playmate. Thomas (Regis Arpin) is not amused. After all, he muses, Je suis le seigneur de chateau (I'm the king of the castle). The two youngsters declare war on each other, and the battle rages on while the lads' parents grow increasingly fond of each other. Meanwhile, the governess's husband has been reported to be missing in action in the French-Indochinese War, to the distress of her son Charles (David Behar). ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Rochefort, Dominique Blanc, (more)
- 1989
The French/Swiss Natalia is set in France during the Nazi occupation. A Jewish film actress (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu) successfully obscures her heritage, rising to the top of her profession. Some uncomfortable moments transpire when she is courted by several high-ranking German officials. The film takes it time making its points, but the quality of the acting overcomes the slow spots. Writer/director Bernard Cohn had previously worked as assistant to such cinematic heavyweights as Buñuel and Truffaut. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Arditi, Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, (more)
- 1988
This is a remake of the 1982 film Savannah Smiles. Colin (Jacques Higelen) and Mailland (Daniel Martin) are small-time crooks on the run who are surprised to find the seven-year-old runaway Savannah (Elodie Gautier) is along for the ride. The police and her parents fear she has been kidnapped, and a massive manhunt is launched with orders to shoot to kill the alleged perpetrators. The lovable little girl soon melts the hearts of the crooks, as the trio enjoy an unlikely but sentimental friendship. The late Marcel Bozzuffi makes his last screen appearance as Coplan, the confident cop in charge of recovering Savannah. Rene Feret plays Savannah's father, a hypocritical politician. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jacques Higelin, Daniel Martin, (more)
The women in this story are the customers of amateur abortionist Isabelle Huppert. The time is 1941, and the place is a Nazi-occupied French town. Struggling to survive, Huppert turns to illegally terminating unwanted pregnancies for a hefty fee. As her income increases, Huppert moves her family from their grimy surroundings to a posh apartment, sharing her digs with her new friend, prostitute Marie Trintignant. Completely seduced by her affluent lifestyle, Huppert ignores her shell-shocked husband Francois Cluzet, preferring to dally with Nazi collaborator Nils Tavernier. Things take a disastrous turn after one of Huppert's "customers" dies and her disgruntled husband turns her over to the authorities. Story of Women was inspired by the real-life tale of Marie-Louise Girard, who in 1943 was executed by the Vichy Government, who'd declared abortion as a Crime Against the State because it diminished the number of potential soldiers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, François Cluzet, (more)
- 1988
- PG13
Claude Sautet's A Few Days With Me (Quelque Jours avec Moi) stars Daniel Auteuil as the emotionally disturbed heir to a supermarket empire. Auteuil's mother Danielle Darrieux tries to give her son some purpose in life by assigning him the task of reinvigorating one of the supermarket chain's least profitable links. Every effort Auteuil makes to reach out and communicate with his employees is doomed to failure due to his conscious and unconscious insensitivities. He is humanized by a brief affair with maid Sandrine Bonnaire. The romance doesn't last, and Auteuil ends up back in a mental institution, but still there is a ray of hope for him in the final scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Daniel Auteuil, Sandrine Bonnaire, (more)
- 1987
Set in Vienna, Austria before World War I, an industrialist grows weary of his cold-hearted wife. He seeks vengeance in a dual with the young officer who desires her affections. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Piccoli, Bulle Ogier, (more)
- 1986
The personal tragedy of an alcoholic hemmed in by a domineering wife is the focus of this drama of hope lost and regained. Simon (Christophe Malavoy) is a solo violinist in an orchestra managed by his wife Laura (Jane Birkin). Haunted by specters of his own inadequacy, he loses his insecurities in drink, but that only results in rejection from his fellow musicians. They do not want him playing in the next major concert, which puts Laura in a bind. She fights for him to continue playing, not realizing that he may actually need time off. Simon begins to turn himself around when he meets a recovering alcoholic who introduces him to AA-style meetings and new friends. They understand his problem from their own perspective, yet he still has his increasingly belligerent wife and his future as a musician to handle. La Femme de ma vie was awarded Best First Film by the French Academy of Cinema. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Birkin, Christophe Malavoy, (more)
- 1984
A notorious, internationally known sex symbol (Phoebe Cates) attempts to track down her birth mother in this glitzy, deliciously trashy melodrama. The mother could be one of three women, all of whom have vowed to never reveal the secret truth behind the child's illegitimate birth. Based on the novel by Shirley Conran. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bess Armstrong, Brooke Adams, (more)
