Souvenir

It's always a pleasure to watch Isabelle Huppert on screen and take the cinematic risks she does. Here she portrays Laura, a noted singer some thirty years before. But after the breakup with her husband and manager (Johan Leysen) she has chosen to isolate herself and work a humdrum job at a pate factory.

Along comes Jean, a new employee at the factory, who recognizes her right away mainly because his father is a big fan. Kevin Azais ably portrays Jean a boxer and some 40 years her junior. There is an instant attraction between the two and a May-December romance will blossom.

Jean begins to push Laura to make a comeback, whereby he will be her manager. Things will get complicated when Laura turns to her ex-husband for help.

As I see it, this is a rather simple and sweet story but it never really rings completely true. Having Laura as a torch singer was the right choice, mainly because Huppert's voice is pleasing but not particularly strong.

Overall, the movie, directed by Belgian filmmaker Bavo Defurne, is watchable thanks to the amazing Huppert, but I could never really buy completely into its characters.