Dead on arrival
‘French Exit’ goes for dark, quirky fun but mainly wastes talents of Michelle Pfieffer
“French Exit” behaves as if it has a wholly interesting character at its center.
It’s understandable considering the 2018 novel of the same name from which it has been adapted — and which also centers around a Manhattan socialite who, while running out of money, goes to Paris to die — was generally well-received.
It’s rather shocking just how uncompelling the movie version of Frances Price is with the ever-talented Michelle Pfieffer in the role.
We don’t blame her for “French Exit” — getting a limited theatrical release in Northeast Ohio this week — being such a dud.
It’s also hard to pin it on writer Patrick deWitt, who adapted his own novel and, thus, probably has a good feel for what makes it work.
That essentially leaves director Azazel Jacobs to take the lion’s share of the blame.
In his hands, the vaguely surreal “French Exit” is mildly quirky but painfully slow. (Think a Wes Anderson film largely stripped of its parts.)
On top of that, the characters surrounding Frances — especially the story’s second most important, her directionless son, Malcolm (Lucas Hedges) — generally are far duller than she is.
Early on, we watch an interaction between mother and grown son in which she asks oddbut-probing questions of the status of his relationship with Susan (Imogen Poots), with whom she’s largely unimpressed. He doesn’t offer much.
“Hmm,” she says. “To be young-ish and in love-ish.”
She soon meets with a financial advisor who tells her that what he’s been warning her about has become reality: She is broke, her bank accounts having run dry 12 years after the death of her wealthy husband, Franklin (Tracy Letts).
“My plan was to die before the money ran out,” she says, adding that her death kept not happening. “And here I am.”
She agrees to sell her remaining assets and accepts a friend’s invitation to stay in her Paris apartment. Malcolm tags along, dropping the saddened and perplexed Susan seemingly with little thought.
Also on the trip to France is Small Frank, a cat that, she believes, possesses the soul of her husband.
On the voyage across the ocean, Malcolm encounters Madeleine (Danielle MacDonald), a fortuneteller who seems to have a genuine talent for knowing when someone is close to his or her death.
Once in Paris, with Small Frank having been snuck through customs, Frances reluctantly befriends the eccentric Mme. Reynard (Valerie Mahaffey), who was fascinated by Frances from her own time in New York.
The cast of characters grows from there to include a private investigator (Daniel Di Tomasso), who, along with the aforementioned collection of oddballs, comes to inhabit the apartment along with the Prices. It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
“French Exit” primarily is concerned with being a character study. And while the primarily self-involved Frances does have a real soft spot for the downtrodden she encounters, she is worth only so close an examination.
Initially focused on getting rid of her cash on hand alarmingly quickly, Frances ultimately becomes obsessed with finding Small Frank after he runs away into the Paris streets.
It’s not as if “French Exit” is never fun, but even its better moments — such as a seance aimed at communicating with Small Frank and/or Franklin — feel like missed opportunities.
Mostly, though, the film just drags and drags. Pfieffer (“Murder on the Orient Express,” “Ant-Man and the Wasp”) is fine, but she’s had better opportunities to shine in her lengthy career and in recent years. (She’s tremendous in the underrated and misunderstood 2017 film “Mother!”)
Meanwhile, Hedges — who earned deserved praise for his performance in 2016’s “Manchester by the Sea” — is as bland here as in last year’s “Let Them Talk.”
MacDonald (“Patti Cake$,” “Unbelievable”) and Mahaffey (“Young Sheldon,” “Dead to Me”) bring a little flavor to this dish, but not enough to make it genuinely flavorful.
Without having seen Jacobs’ previous work, which includes “Terri” (2011) and “The Lovers” (2017), it’s hard to say if he simply was the wrong choice for this story. That’s certainly how it feels, however.
About the best he has to offer is some lovely scenery in Paris, although the film also reportedly was shot in Montreal.
By the time “French Exit” blissfully comes to an end, it’s difficult to be all that invested in whether Frances takes a permanent leave from this world. You’re just happy to see the film walk out the door. ‘French Exit’ Where: Theaters (limited).
When: April 2. Rated: R for language and sexual references.
Runtime: 1 hour, 50 minutes.
Stars (of four): 1.5.