‘Bernadette’ REVIEW: An offbeat biopic of a politician's wife
‘Bernadette’ REVIEW: An offbeat biopic of a politician's wife
Catherine Deneuve as Bernadette Chirac
Publicity cannot escape the lives of a politician's family. Every move is free to be gawked at by the people. One wrong word creates mockery or flattery that will be written in history books. For a politician's wife, it is their job (or what the tradition expects them to do) to keep themselves out of trouble that would cause a national emergency or tarnish the image of their spouse.
In Bernadette, we see our titular character, Bernadette Chirac (Catherine Deneuve) go through the hurdles of being a politician's wife, or Jacques Chirac's wife. Her ambitiousness sparks from within, and sadly, that drive isn't really appreciated by her husband. Instead, she is demanded to be in the shadows and be supportive on the sidelines.
However, that's not true to her nature at all and throughout the film, we see her in defiance of her husband's demands. From playing a more active role in public service to rebranding her image, that of a nurturing and caring politician's wife, Bernadette sets out to do one thing: do something meaningful.
Leah Domenac, in her debut feature, knows how to capture that wild side of our protagonist and sets the mood of the film very quickly as it opens with a choir gloriously and playfully singing general details about her. This schtick continues throughout the rest of the film. They never feel shoehorned in a lame fashion; instead, they provide insight as to what is happening on the screen. As the film opens also, we are reminded of the fact that this film is a work of fiction and some of the events may be altered.
The film portrays her personality in an offbeat manner: a stern, scrawny woman filled with political ambition. When coached into being one, she can be charming to the public while still being visibly uncomfortable at times. Catherine Deneuve plays the role flawlessly and proves once again that she can, in fact, do comedic roles. A slight change in her expression suggests more of our character's thoughts. Her physicality and expressions produce laughs from the audience. At the same time, she fills her with empathy and we understand Mrs. Chirac’s struggles of being a woman lacking in power. That’s why we celebrate with her when the rebranding plan she schemed with Bernard Niquet (Denis Podalydès) works.
The film’s glaring mistake, however, is that while they showed the flaws of Mrs. Chirac’s personal life, some of her crimes during her tenure as an important public figure in position are almost left out. It was the driving conflict of its flash-forward during its third act, but that’s just it. While the tone of the film explains why it would be this way and that it would make her unlikeable, a sudden jump in the future with only mentioning it is a bit disappointing. The number of achievements the film showed and how vital her role in her husband’s presidency is throughout the film, so balancing it out by also showing her blunders wouldn’t hurt. It would make us come back to reality: that she’s not the Princess Diana she hoped she would be.
It does all a modern biopic would do. In an industry oversaturated with biopics, Bernadette has nothing new nor subversive to offer in the genre. Still, the film knows how to have fun and it does just that. With Filipino audiences now getting the chance to watch this, they may see some semblance of Imelda Marcos, also a former first lady who also committed corruption during her tenure as one (far worse than Mrs. Chirac, I imagine), and question, even more, the so-called good image she built all these years all for it to be wasted by her blinding ambition and power-hungry ways.
Bernadette is part of the lineup of this year’s French Film Festival Manille, running from November 25 to December 3, 2023, at SM Mall of Asia and SM Megamall.
