Bernadette
Legendary French actress Catherine Deneuve plays Bernadette Chirac in this uproarious comedy based on actual events. A wonderful film to close this year’s French Film Festival.
In 1995 Jacques Chirac (Michel Vuillermoz) is elected President of the French Republic. When Bernadette Chirac (Catherine Deneuve) steps into the Elysée, she is ready for the recognition she’s earned, having always worked in his shadow and tirelessly supported her husband’s journey to the presidency.
Instead, she finds herself set aside and brushed off as old fashioned, cold and sour-tempered. With the help of her chief of staff, Bernard Niquet (Denis Podalydès) Bernadette embarks on a campaign to restore her reputation and assert her role as first lady by becoming a major media figure.
Léa Domenach’s directorial debut skilfully blurs the lines between fact and fiction. A tale of female 'empowerment', ‘Bernadette’ is a chronicle of the Chirac years, with delightful gags and bright colours.
