Haddenham Screen

DRIVING MADELEINE (15)

91 mins

Director:  Christian Carion

Starring:  Line Renauld, Dany Boon, Alice Isaaz

Synopsis:

A seemingly simple taxi ride across Paris evolves into a profound meditation on the realities of the driver, whose personal life is in shambles, and his fare, an elderly woman whose warmth belies her shocking past. Charles, the taxi driver in Paris, is having a very bad day.  A quick fare in the suburbs seems like an easy distraction. Enter Madeleine, an immaculately groomed 92-year-old woman, who informs Charles that the trip today will not be a direct one. She is moving into a care home and would like to make some stops along the way, predicting that this might be her last car ride through the city. Initially exasperated and grumbling, Charles is slowly lured in by her warm charm and directness, fascinated by the stories she wants to tell. Their ride takes them through the momentous locations of her life and we discover that she has had a shocking and very dramatic journey indeed. Their short friendship is sure to have a lasting impact as Madeleine listens to Charles confess his own worries, all of which she absorbs with candour and clarifying humour.

French, with English sub-titles

Awards:  

Reviews:

"Both of the leads keep it low-key, with 95-year-old Renaud’s unfussy reminiscences dotted with defiant irony, and the initially unforthcoming Boon opening up under her cajoling as naturally as a flower."  ***  GUARDIAN

"Madeleine’s story has many twists, going to a dark place. Renaud plays her as a survivor; someone who learned to endure. Her warmth is utterly irresistible."