Jeune Femme [DVD]

Laetitia Dosch as Paula delivers a compelling performance in this Parisian drama, the debut film from writer/director Léonor Serraille.We first meet Paula with a bandage on her forehead - the result of a wound sustained in headbutting her ex-boyfriend’s door. Having just been turfed out of his flat, Paula is a lost thirty-something who seems desperate to regain her sense of self after serving as an artist’s muse; words tumble from her mouth constantly, and she’s a constant display of hyper- energy, but, to use a cliche, Paula in fact doesn’t have a very deep sense of self, being broke, homeless, and directionless (being unqualified for most jobs). She manages to rub up pretty much everyone she meets the wrong way, and even resorts to stealing her ex's cat (I must confess this particular thread rather annoyed me - whenever animals are involved in films I can't stop thinking about how the director got them to 'act').As the film progresses, Serraille follows Paula as she searches for work and attempts to figure out her place in the world, on her own terms. Along the way, she befriends a woman through a bizarre misunderstanding, becomes a loving if somewhat irresponsible au pair, and attempts to patch up the relationship with her estranged mother. With the manic energy of its lead performance left to speak for itself, Serraille’s context is one of gritty realism: run-down hotels, lonely public parks, unfriendly rain-soaked streets - Paris here is an ugly, overwhelming metropolis, with no residue of its romantic reputation, except in the praise given it by Ousmane, a security guard who befriends Paula. To Paula, who presumably once was graced with its artistic and financial limelight, the city is much less attractive (it 'doesn't like people' she declares). I read somewhere that Serraille directed the film while pregnant, and when similar topics arise, Paula’s strangely intimate conversation with a female doctor feels strikingly heartfelt. Yet 'Jeune Femme' is also full of gentle humour, as when Paula joins a retail team run by consumer-obsessed tyrants in a shopping mall lingerie department. Paula may well be slightly unhinged and not particularly 'likeable', but there’s a determination in her, picking herself up each time a set-back occurs, that’s impossible not to admire.A very watchable and subtly feminist character study.

A 31-year-old woman (Laetitia Dosch) rejected from a ten year relationship hangs around Paris in a destitute state of near homelessness.I was expecting something charming like Francis Ha (2012) so I was surprised that this was often a little on the bleak and serious side among the more frivolous moments. It’s a bit aimless without a clear purpose or reason to exist. It lacks a strong story beyond hanging out with a sometimes rather unlikable character. It’s full of random odd scenes and subplots that don’t really go anywhere. The decent pace covered up a multitude of sins as it never lingered too long to become meandering, although technically I think the script is pure meandering. It’s just sort of THERE, taking up space on the screen while being neither good or bad. The climax was small and indifferent. There wasn’t much of a destination.Some of the scenes felt like an acting workshop with long emotional monologues that allowed the lead actress to show off rather than working as natural scenes in their own right.The movie held my attention and was utterly painless to watch but it’s not a substantial film of any particular note. In my opinion it’s a lot more watchable than the very boring black and white 60s French New Wave classics it’s imitating