Black widow

>> La Veuve de Saint-Pierre's remarkable cast saves it from costume-drama mediocrity

by SIOBHÀN O'CONNOR

There's no denying how frustrating staid, riskless costume dramas can be, where substance is replaced with big budgets, fancy costumes and schmaltz. And though Patrice Leconte's La Veuve de Saint-Pierre teetered on the edge of the molten-lava pit that is costume-drama hell, it's nice to report that it never actually fell in. It's not the most original piece of celluloid ever, but Leconte's ease as a storyteller--as well as his uncanny knack for making everyone and everything look beautiful--remains intact here, making this a thoroughly watchable film.

While epic in structure, the plot stays intimate, leaving the story's success up to Leconte's three hand-picked leads: Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Binoche and Palm d'Or-winning director Emir Kusturica in his first major on-screen role. Needless to say, the three have no trouble providing a strong backbone for this alternately funny, tragic and beautiful watch.

Set in a 19th-century military garrison on the French colonial island of St-Pierre, the film tells the tale of a strong, quiet Captain (Auteuil) and his ferociously modern but sensitive wife, Madame La (Binoche). Binoche--who's made a brilliant career out of playing tragic, porcelain women in the past--is refreshingly iron-fisted this time around. The Captain is totally whipped by her: he not only does whatever she asks, he also makes professional decisions based on her whims, all in the name of love.

Enter Neel Auguste (Kusturica), a kind man who's condemned to death by guillotine for a murder he and a friend drunkenly committed. Lucky for Neel, the colony has no guillotine of its own and he's sent to stay in a cell in Madame La's garden until it arrives. Outraged, Madame La demands that he not be kept cooped up in the dark all day. In deference to her--and much to the fury of his colleagues--the Captain gives Neel complete freedom to roam around on his own, becoming something of a town hero. Madame La and Neel continue to get closer as the tragic ending approaches.

Because Madame La's relationships serve as the film's pivots, it's questionable that Leconte would spend so much time establishing the clichéd puppy love between her and the Captain instead of her more intriguing friendship with Neel. Madame La and the Captain are so in love that it's nauseating to watch: there are ample bedroom scenes (no nudity though), scenes where they skip around trees and then get it on in the grass like horny teenagers etc. Thankfully, what their relationship lacks in subtlety it makes up for in substance later on in the film when Madame La's intense and ambiguously romantic friendship with Neel challenges her marriage.

Odd as it sounds, by the film's end it feels as though arthouse superstars Binoche and Auteuil have gracefully stepped out of the spotlight to make room for the notoriously hermitic Kusturica, who really stands out as the simple-minded, burly and oddly sexy Neel. Kusturica (who directed Underground and Chat noir, chat blanc) uses his considerably large physique to convey both intimidation and a clunky harmlessness. His performance is natural and heartbreaking, something that is bound to attract a lot of warranted attention his way.

La Veuve de Saint-Pierre opens Friday, Feb 23