In the movie The Widow Clicquot, François Clicquot (Tom Sturridge) loved talking to the grapes he grew. And he loved sharing his passion with his bride, Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin Clicquot (Haley Bennett). But when – no spoiler – he dies, she wants to run the wine business they had started together. A woman running a complicated, fledgling, undercapitalized operation in the politically hostile environment of Napoleonic Europe? She says, of course.
Her father-in-law Phillipe (Ben Miles) is among the many men who believe she is ill-equipped for the task. She does have one ally, the wine merchant Droite (Paul Rhys), who is willing to flaunt conventions.
The story is based on a true story, as told in Tilar J. Mazzeo’s New York Times-bestselling biography. The widow Clicquot practically invented the champagne industry.
It’s well-acted, especially by the lead actress, and well-filmed. The message is inspirational. Though it’s a French production, it is in English.
Arm’s length
Yet, it seems somehow at arm’s length. Mme. Clicquot’s great success is only footnoted at the end. Indeed, the best scene in the movie is the last one, when she is brought before a tribunal designed to ascertain whether she was violating just norms but the law. Then, the 90-minute movie ends.
Beatrice Loayza wrote in the New York Times: “Ambitious as it is in scope, the film is also somewhat charmless and dour, caught between wanting to deliver the passion audiences expect from a period romance and constructing a suspenseful underdog tale. It’s too bad it never finds a winning balance.” I so wanted to like the film. I admired the elements but the concoction never came together for me.
FWIW, both critics and the audience at Rotten Tomatoes gave it an 85% positive mark. Here’s an interview with Haley Bennett, not only the star but also a producer of the film.
My wife and I saw The Widow Clicquot in late July at the Spectrum Theatre in Albany.