PARIS--A stuffy period piece whose stunning decors are considerably more intriguing than the characters inhabiting them, Madame Solario is a disappointing follow-up to writer-director-producer Ren Frets 2011 sleeper hit, Mozarts Sister. Once again featuring the filmmakers daughter in the lead role, this low budget, French-language adaptation of Gladys Huntingtons Lake Como-set novel plays like a Visconti film on Xanax, offering up a gorgeous backdrop for an otherwise yawn-inducing portrait of the rich and decadent.
The 1956 book caused a small sensation when it was originally published in the U.S., firstly because the author was anonymous (Huntington only revealed herself once success struck), and secondly because its depictions of incest, rape and suicide amongst a cadre of upper crust vacationers was something of a rarity at the time. However, whatever taboos were broken by the source material are pretty much inoculated by Frets laborious direction here, and Solario should only see minimal Francophone action outside its small-scale local release.
Set in a fabulous lakeside palazzo-cum-hotel circa 1907, the intrigue shifts points of view between a young British milquetoast, Bernard (Harry Lister Smith) and the supposedly enchanting Natalia Solario (Marie Fret), whom he quickly falls for, only to learn that the tight-lipped Madame harbors some very dark secrets.
These soon come to light when her brother, Eugene (Cyril Descours), unexpectedly shows up, preceded by rumors that he tried to kill their father-in-law, who supposedly made advances (and more) towards his sister. Also on hand is a filthy rich Russian (Andrei Zayats) whose short temper is only quelled by his ridiculous accent, and a giggly vixen (Salom Stvenin) who annoyingly bursts into song as a means of seduction.
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If this sounds like a laundry list of drawing room clichs, theyre hardly elevated by a laconic style that tends to keep emotions at arms length, with the actors reciting their dialogues like they were reading from the Internal Revenue Code. Certainly, such distancing techniques were often used by the likes of Bresson or Rohmer, but the film has neither the cinematic grace of the former nor the light-hearted morality of the latter, and its depictions of corseted lust, despite the incest angle, barely raise an eyebrow.
As for the eponymous heroine, shes referred to at times as beautiful and magnificent, but in reality has about as much charisma as a cardboard box. This is undoubtedly the result of Frets casting choice, which, like everything else in this one-man-band productionalongside his daughter, the directors wife is credited as both editor and co-producer, while the movie was self-released via their own distribution outfitcertainly has its limitations.
What Fret does manage to capture are the truly magnificent vistas of Lake Como and its many villas, which are bathed in a golden, natural light thats amplified by the use of 16mm film. This, along with the antique-filled, mauve-hewed interiors, makes for some pleasant eye candy to accompany an otherwise lackluster Swiss sjour.
Production companies: Les Films Aylne, Nord-Ouest
Cast: Marie Fret, Cyril Descours, Salom Stvenin, Harry Lister Smith, Andrei Zayats
Director: Ren Fret
Screenwriter: Ren Fret, based on the novel by Gladys Huntington
Producers: Ren Fret, Fabienne Fret
Director of photography: Benjamin Echazarreta
Production designer: Veronica Fruhbrodt
Music: Patrick Dechorgnat
Costume designer: Dorothe Guiraud
Editor: Fabienne Fret
Sales: Les Films Alyne
No rating, 94 minutes
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