Look At Me
Screening: 7 November 2005
France/Italy 2004
Directed by Agnès Jaoui
Leading players ~ Marilou Berry, Jean-Pierre Bacri, Agnès Jaoui.
111 minutes (subtitles)
Synopsis
Unlike the models in her magazines, Lolita (Marilou Berry) struggles with her self-esteem and tries desperately to win the affection of her father Etienne, a successful, but self-obsessed novelist.The overweight Lolita does not match up to his image of womanhood and his thoughtless comments lead her to judge herself so harshly she is unable to accept that others might not judge her in the same way. Thus she spurns the attentions of a handsome man who would appreciate her in favour of one who isn't particularly interested.
Etienne, played by Jaoui's writing partner Jean-Pierre Bacri, manages to upset everyone around him including his young wife, unaware of the damage he's doing to his daughter when he casually refers to her as 'my big girl'.
Despite her image problems Lolita has a lovely voice. Her singing teacher Sylvia, (played by Agnès Jaoui herself), is married to Pierre, (Laurent Grévill), a struggling author. When she discovers that Lolita has a famous and potentially helpful father she suddenly finds Lolita a more interesting pupil.
Director Agnès Jaoui's second film, following the enchanting Le Gout des Autres, is an incisive satire on the literary scene and the cult of celebrity.
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Film facts
Winner of the Best Screenplay award at Cannes in 2004.Look At Me contains a clip from the 1948 Western Blood On The Moon starring Robert Mitchum and Barbara Bel Geddes.
As well as being the film's co-writer and co-star, Jean-Paul Bacri is also director Agnès Jaoui's husband.
Unlike his wife, Jean-Pierre Bacri has his own puppet on Les Guignols de L'info, the French answer to Spitting Image.
Newcomer Marilou Berry who plays Lolita is the daughter of actress Josiane Balasko whose credits include Trop Belle Pour Toi and Edina Monsoon in the French version of Absolutely Fabulous.
