344. Beautiful Lies

When you're feeling a bit down, what's better that a bit of French froth to bring back a toothy grin?
England might be riven with violence this week and my football club might be the most depressing in the country but I still had room for a snigger at the Pierre Salvadori's farce.
Beautiful Lies is a creatively crafted farce, thanks to a very attractive cast, is mightily easy on the eye.
Audrey Tautou plays Emilie, the strait-laced owner of a hairdessing salon in Paris.
Her mum (Nathalie Baye) has been long in despair after splitting up from her hubby.
Thus, to lift her spirits, Emilie copies out a love letter which has been sent to her by an anonymous admirer and posts it to her mum.
Initially, it has the desired effect but soon her mum needs a tangible target for her ardour.
Cue, the salon's handyman Jean (Sami Bouajila). Unknown to Emilie, he was the one who sent the original letter but, thanks to a couple of crazy misunderstandings, becomes the one who her mum wants.
Beautiful Lies is a chick flick which cuts deep into the relationship between adult child and parents who have split up.
Meanwhile, it is also really funny. Every time Emilie thinks she has resolved one crisis, she faces another.
Tautou is super, as always. She flies around the set light a butterfly and her comedy timing is spot on.
She has an excellent foil in Bouajila, who is a splendid straight man, unflustered initially but finally forced to crack up by the bizarre demands put upon him.
But the star turn is Baye. I had to look up to see if she was old enough to be Tautou's mother, she looks that good (she is 63, Tautou is 34).
From deranged to demure, she goes through a gamut of emotions with grace but a nice dash of middle-aged bonkersness.
So, if you are looking for an antidote to the world of misery, this weekend Beautiful Lies might just be the movie for you. Although, you might just have to be a big girl's blouse to really appreciate it.
I guess I must be, because I'm rating it 7.5/10