A seamless mix of style, grit and friendship
Haute Couture (M, 101 mins) Directed by Sylvie Ohayon Reviewed by James Croot ★★★★ In French with English subtitles
Already reeling from the impending end of her lifelong career at Dior, Esther (Nathalie Baye) is left distraught after a subway mugging.
Gone are her beloved perfume, indispensable utensils and priceless sketchbook, stolen, along with the handbag they were in, by a young woman.
Another, similarly aged busking mademoiselle had ditched her guitar and given chase, but apparently to no avail.
Left holding the six-stringed instrument, what Esther doesn’t know is that its owner was also in on the con.
However, as she sifts through her misappropriated booty in a nearby church, Jade (Lyna Khoudri) begins to feel more and more unease, particularly when it includes a Jewish cross.
‘‘It’s bad luck to steal religious s…’’ her partner-in-crime Souad (Soumaye Bocoum) frets, ‘‘you’ve got to give it back.’’
Via Esther’s swipe card, Jade manages to track her down at the Avenue Montaigne workshop and is surprised to find herself not facing police questioning, but rather polite dinner conversation after an invitation from her victim.
‘‘With those hands, you could make beautiful things,’’ Esther encourages, before offering her the chance to trial as a sewing intern.
Some of her fellow workers though aren’t convinced that Jade is cut out for this exacting world where a single mismeasurement or imprecise snip can be terribly costly.
‘‘If she shows up tomorrow, I’ll buy the croissants all week,’’ one confidently states.
A kind of Phantom Threadmeets-Ken Loach drama (this especially reminded me of the latter’s magnificent My Sweet Sixteen), director and co-writer Sylvie Ohayon’s (2014’s PapaWas Not a Rolling Stone) tale of an unlikely friendship also evokes memories of the fabulous recent British movie Rocks.
As with Sarah Gavron’s awardwinning look at a group ofmulticultural London teens, this has a grittiness and committed performances that ground the story and immerse the viewer. That doesn’t mean it stints on the glamour though.
Tuille and fancy lace abounds, as the seamstresses work their magic on a number of gowns, and although Haute Couture follows some familiar culture-clash beats, you’ve already found yourself hooked by the central pair and the sparky, sometimes spiky interactions.
Another reminder of the skills of the multi-talented Baye (Netflix’s Call My Agent, Downton Abbey: A New Era), this is also a terrific showcase for the Algerian-born rising star Khoudri (The French Dispatch).