November 25th 2010 (Limited Australian release)
Dir: Marc Fitoussi
Language: French
What do you do when your outlandish mother embarrasses you? In the case of Esmeralda (Lolita Chammah) you get engaged and tell your mother she's not invited to the wedding, that she is instead "in Brazil".
What do you do if your only daughter forbids you from coming to her wedding? In the case of Babou (Isabelle Huppert) you start a job selling time share apartments in Belgium to prove to your daughter that you can be responsible.
Mother-daughter relationships are constantly explored in film; usually the mother is the overbearing or "zany" one, a person who simply doesn't act their age, and the daughter is given the role of the girl too mature for her years, the role reversal if you will, she must mother her own mother. The reason these stories can work so well is reliant on the honest nature of the characters, and this is never so true as in Copacabana, the new film written and directed by Marc Fitoussi.
I often wait in the cinema as the lights come up and the credits roll to hear what other people thought, as they chatter away to their movie companions. Seeing this film on a Saturday afternoon in a half empty cinema for a preview screening, many dragged friends or partners into it blind. One woman prior to the film starting even had to ask what the film was called again. The comment I heard as people began filing out, however, was "it was a bit slow... but I liked it".
The film's pacing was inconsistent, that much I can say, but on the whole the vibrant and unusual characters, not only Babou but the people she encounters at her new job, made this film a pure joy to watch. Forgiving the final scene, the film carefully and wisely strays from sentimentality and instead serves us realism and subtle humour. Babou isn't an entirely likeable character but at the same time you don't easily side with Esmerelda. It's a carefully calculated balance that allows you to really get the characters in a short period of time and ultimately root for them in their journey to repair their relationship.
Showing in limited release this is a delightful film with endearing performances. The soundtrack must also be mentioned as one of the most fitting and playful of recent memory. The music so perfectly captures Babou's character and lights the film even when in dreary Belgium.
A film that can only be described as delightful and charming.
3.5 / 5
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