Une veuve en or

"Une Veuve En Or" (1969), one of prolific writer Michel Audiard's few forays behind the director's camera, is an uneven black comedy that is occasionally inventive, especially in its first half, with frequent fourth-wall breaking and speaking directly to the audience by several characters, but it also often descends into farcicality and repetitiveness; for example, there is a running gag of a senior hitman who keeps shooting the wrong person, and while it is amusing the first or the second time it happens, it is less amusing the tenth time. Michele Mercier, at the height of her beauty and changing outfits in almost every scene, is a definite draw. **1/2 out of 4.

"Une Veuve En Or " is proof positive that Michel Audiard as a director ,it's a long way from Audiard the brilliant writer whose best lines are remembered by the French audience .

"Une Veuve En Or" (a golden widow) : a woman learns that she is her forgotten rich uncle 's sole legatee ;but there is an embarrassing clause :she's got to be a widow to latch onto the dough or else the fortune will go to a vague sect (another cliché of the time).There's the rub :she's married so she's got to get rid of the hubby.

Many critics wrote that Michele Mercier (whose only claim to fame was the famous Marquise Des Anges ,Angélique) was not the character and that Mireille Darc would have scored better as Delphine and it's certainly true .But the gags are rather ponderous and true black humor is desperately lacking :it's not "arsenic and old lace" .

Audiard's talent as a director never matched his genius as a writer but some of his movies are entertaining :"Comment Reussir Quand On Est Con Et Pleurnichard " or "Elle Boit Pas ...." ;the former was saved by Jean Carmet ,the latter by Annie Girardot.Unlike these two later works "Une Veuve En Or" was not a commercial success.

That is one more Michel Audiard's film which is rather hard to find. I don't think it is available in DVD, nor was it in VHS. Every Audiard's film as a director was a corny movie, far from the Gérard Oury's ones for instances. But as a screen writer, and especially dialogues, he will remain one of the best ever in France. His film are nevertheless fun to watch and pretty fun time waster. Concerning this movie, you can find some Jean-Pierre Mocky accents, which I did not particularly noticed in the other Audiard's features.

You can live without this Junk film, but if you are a die hard Audiard's fan, don't miss it.