In the slight period comedy MrsHarrisGoestoParis, the charming cast can't overcome the stale plot and disappointing third act.
In a summer filled with superheroes in spandex, dinosaurs romping across the globe, and Tom Cruise once again risking his life for an impossible-to-pull-off stunt, you can forgive this moviegoer for looking for something a little bit quieter and somewhat more gentle, a film which has a modest goal of entertaining without the need of elaborate special effects.
From London to Paris, a woman pursues her dreams The film stars Leslie Manville, a veteran of Mike Leigh’s working-class dramas who gave a pitch-perfect performance in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread, as the title character, an English widow working as a maid in 1950s London. Her life is lonely but happy, her sadness over her husband’s disappearance in World War II punctuated by boisterous nights out with her best friend Vi and womanizer Archie .
In Paris, Mrs. Harris finds her way past the guarded gates of Dior’s luxury couture headquarters, where she befriends the handsome accountant Andre , the beautiful model Natasha , and a kind widower, the Marquis de Chassagne . Of course, there has to be a villain in something like this, and Isabelle Huppert cashes her paycheck as Dior’s snobby manager that, even after a climactic reveal, still makes you wonder why one of France’s best living actresses would slum it in such a thankless role.
The first half of the movie is the best as it goes out of its way to convincingly evoke the grimy bustle of working-class London at the beginning of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign. It’s here that the film finds the right balance of realism and fantasy, juggling Mrs. Harris’ loneliness with her vivid social life filled with dancing and betting on horses.
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