France 2006
Directed by
Daniele Thompson
106 minutes
Rated PG
Reviewed by
Sharon Hurst
Orchestra Seats
Synopsis: Bubbly young Jessica (Cécile de France) arrives in Paris with nothing. She moves to the theatre district,where she inveigles her way into a waitressing job at a bistro that normally never employs women. At the nearby theatre, soap star Catherine Versen (Valerie Lemercier) is about to play a role with the hope of impressing a visiting American film director (Sydney Pollack). Meanwhile at the concert hall, renowned pianist Jean-Francois Lefort (Albert Dupontel) is preparing to perform, while in another part of the neighbourhood Jacques Grumberg is about to auction his entire life’s art collection and must deal with confrontation from his son, Frederic (Christopher Thompson). These colourful characters converge upon the bistro and Jessica observes and interacts with them all.The character of Jessica’s grandma, played by Suzanne Flon, sets the tone from outset, in which she reminisces with her grand-daughter, saying she never could afford luxury, but since she loved it, got a job at the Ritz to at least be near it. Grandma has brought Jessica up and has been important in imbuing the young woman with a sense of determination and adventure. The other central characters, who to outsiders would appear greatly successful, all seem to be greatly dissatisfied with their lives. The actress Catherine is insecure and neurotic, Jean Francois is sick of being a show pony on the stage and simply wishes to play piano for cancer patients, whilst Grumberg knows he is dying and wonders what will become of his life’s collection. His son, Frederic, who once had an affair with his father’s younger mistress, is at a crossroads in life, and it is only because of this that he is able to appreciate a woman he would never otherwise have looked at.
The title of the film is intriguing, reflecting one of life’s persistent issues – the desire to be somewhere we are not. Hence people often move around in a theatre or cinema until they are right in the front, the orchestra seats, only to discover their view is worse there than it was before. Most of the film’s characters are going through similar of life’s dilemmas, with perhaps the exception of Jessica who is so full of joie de vivre, that she seems to get great delight from everything around her.
Many of these characters could have just as easily been scripted into a tragedy, but the director manages to walk the fine line between drama and comedy, tending towards comedy without there being any real laughs, more just a sense of lightness. Much of this is due to the very appealing Cecile de France who is central to the film, bringing a sparkle and innocence that instantly engages the viewer.
As an ensemble film that showcases the old arrondissments of Paris, Orchestra Seats flows freely and easily, and is always fun to watch. Its lightness is deceptive however. At the time I viewed it I didn’t really latch on to some of the themes – they only grew on me with later reflection, suggesting that this seemingly pleasant bit of fluff has some hidden depths.
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