Robust review – Depardieu in cantankerous comfort zone in odd-couple comedy
Peter Bradshaw
2 min read
Robust review – Depardieu in cantankerous comfort zone in odd-couple comedy
Here’s an odd-couple comedy drama about a grumpy, cantankerous old movie star called Georges (Gérard Depardieu), who is assigned a tough “minder” called Aïssa (Déborah Lukumuena) to look after him. Why does he need a security guard? Apparently, there’s a stalker issue (a pretty harmless-looking woman camps outside his apartment building) and he also seems to be the target of environmental activists.
Frankly, the premise for Aïssa’s presence in Georges’ life is a bit thin, and this looks as if it’s going to be a sentimental status-disparity movie like the French hit Untouchable, in which Omar Sy played a black caregiver for grumpy white paraplegic François Cluzet (recently remade with Kevin Hart and Bryan Cranston). Actually, Robust is a bit more interesting than that and Depardieu and Lukumuena are both pretty robust in their various ways.
Director and co-writer Constance Meyer keeps the film alive by insisting on Aïssa’s independent parallel existence, quite aside from her work for Georges: she is a talented amateur wrestler who has a fierce friendship with fellow contender Cosmina (Megan Northam) and coach Adeline (Florence Janas) and has started a relationship with Eddy (Lucas Mortier), a guy at her gym, whom Cosmina thinks is a bit shallow and not worthy of her – a view which the increasingly demanding and possessive Georges comes to share.
Like Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada, he starts invading her non-work personal space. Good-natured, biddable Aïssa even runs Georges’ lines with him for a scene in his new movie which we see in a tense rehearsal sequence and then on the actual shooting day, when the dialogue about disappointment in life and love has an obvious melancholy significance. Maybe not a real stretch for Depardieu, but good work all around, especially from Lukumuena.
Related News & Content
-
How to optimize ‘select found_rows()’ query? Several ‘high load average’ alerts daily
How to optimize 'select found_rows()' query? Several 'high load average' alerts daily,I have 5,000 regular posts, 6,000 posts in one post type and 2,000 posts in another post type. Needless to say, that has made the wp_posts table quite large. Not to mention, I have custom taxonomie... -
How to Use JSON With AJAX?
How to Use JSON With AJAX?,I've defined a PHP callback function to handle the communication between server-side and client-side: function json_render_modal_body() { check_ajax_referer( THEME_PREFIX . '-modals', 'nonce'... -
Filtering context for render_block function
Filtering context for render_block function,I am trying to use render_block within a function called from the WP admin via AJAX The render_block returns null/empty however if I run my function using the wp hook returns the rendered HTML for ... -
How do I hide submenus from the top menu bar?
How do I hide submenus from the top menu bar?,My website is wiki-style and has a lot of pages that should only be reached through links on other pages. Having these all accessible from the top menu bar under their respective headings leads you... -
Register users without confirmation
Register users without confirmation,I'm looking to register users without requiring confirmation of their emails (and even better, no password when they register). Basically, I want them to subscribe their mails using wp registration -
How to use AJAX in wordpress front end?
How to use AJAX in wordpress front end?,I have two inputs in an HTML Widget block on a post. What I need to do: send the inputs (from the html widget) value to AJAX, construct and execute a query, render a table with the results back on ... -
Display posts from Custom Post Type, group by term, arrange term groups and arrange items within groups by menu order
Display posts from Custom Post Type, group by term, arrange term groups and arrange items within groups by menu order,I have a Custom Post Type 'my_cpt' and a custom taxonomy 'types' which has several terms, all of which have posts. I want to do is be able to control both the order of the groups (terms from my cus... -
How do I know if the custom theme is a child theme or a full-custom theme?
How do I know if the custom theme is a child theme or a full-custom theme?,Inherited a custom built WordPress site. How do I know if the theme it uses is a child theme or a full-custom theme? I would like to delete the unused themes for security and to free up space, but ... -
getEntityRecords/useEntityRecords: How to use CPT metadata?
getEntityRecords/useEntityRecords: How to use CPT metadata?,I use getEntityRecords as described in the official data API tutorial (https://learn.wordpress.org/lesson/retrieving-wordpress-data-records/). I.e.: const [searchTerm, setSearchTerm] = useState... -
Carol Kirkwood stuns in figure-hugging dress amid BBC Breakfast technical chaos
Carol Kirkwood stuns in figure-hugging dress amid BBC Breakfast technical chaos,CAROL Kirkwood stunned in a figure-hugging dress amid a technical blunder. BBC Breakfast was flung into chaos this morning after a string of sound issues. However Carol, 61, was all smiles as she p… -
Families ‘to sue prison’ where loud inmates ‘terrorise kids’ with screaming
Families 'to sue prison' where loud inmates 'terrorise kids' with screaming,Residents living next door to a new prison who say their kids have to sleep wearing headphones and some leave during weekends due to the racket are threatening to sue the prison service -
Doctor Strange’s Secret Wars Role May Be More Important Than You Thought – Looper
Doctor Strange's Secret Wars Role May Be More Important Than You Thought - Looper,According to entertainment leaker Alex Perez, Doctor Strange will find himself confronting his inner struggles as he headlines "Avengers: Secret Wars." -
I’m a clown for not trying Korean beauty secret for glowy skin sooner – don’t worry, I’m not putting cheese on my face
I’m a clown for not trying Korean beauty secret for glowy skin sooner – don’t worry, I’m not putting cheese on my face,A BEAUTY influencer has regrets about not trying out Korean beauty advice for glowy skin sooner. Although the trick can look a little strange at first, she assured viewers that she was not putting … -
“Not every artist deserves to be rich”: Avenged Sevenfold’s M. Shadows on Spotify revenue and why Web3 is the future
“Not every artist deserves to be rich”: Avenged Sevenfold’s M. Shadows on Spotify revenue and why Web3 is the future,Avenged Sevenfold’s M. Shadows has shared his opinion on the difficulty of making money through streaming platforms as an artist, arguing that “not every artist deserves to be rich”. -
‘We are at risk’ – health expert in urgent warning for Irish people over Easter
‘We are at risk’ - health expert in urgent warning for Irish people over Easter,AN URGENT warning has been released to those jetting off over the Easter break. With measles already on the rise, there is an increased risk of a more widespread outbreak in the coming weeks. Trave… -
Black Holes Are Even Weirder Than You Imagined
Black Holes Are Even Weirder Than You Imagined,It’s now thought that they could illuminate fundamental questions in physics, settle questions about Einstein’s theories, and even help explain the universe. -
The odd history of on-hold music
The odd history of on-hold music,We've all been put on hold when we've tried to reach someone. Have you ever thought about the music that plays while you wait? -
‘What Jennifer Did’: Netflix doc explores shocking Ont. murder-for-hire case
'What Jennifer Did': Netflix doc explores shocking Ont. murder-for-hire case,Most of Jennifer Pan's entire life was made up of lies. When her parents began to catch on, she decided to bring in hired hitmen. -
TV and film extras fear generative AI will copy their faces and bodies to take their jobs
TV and film extras fear generative AI will copy their faces and bodies to take their jobs,Plus: Apple has spent $22.1B on research for generative AI, and Kickstarter introduces new AI policies -
MultiVersus battle pass and everything to know about it
MultiVersus battle pass and everything to know about it,Curious about what there is to know about the MultiVersus battle pass? Here is how it works and what you can expect from each new one added to the game
