Florence Loiret Caille is one of my favorites. The versatile character actress used to work extensively with Claire Denis and Jerome Bonnell, and has recently found more success on TV ("The Bureau," "Women at War"). Her roles have ranged from the wily spy ("Bureau") to diabolical brothel madame ("Women at War"), child-like tomboys (_The Aquatic Effect_ which I just rewatched, _The Little Bedroom_, soulful prostitute (_J'attends quelqu'un_), and reckless seductress (_La Dame de Trefle_). Her range is limitless, yet she has won so little recognition.
Sometimes dubbed as _The Queen of Clubs_, _La Dame de Trefle_ finds her in a rare starring role. Her livewire floozy Argine and brother Aurelien (Malik Zidi, also terrific) has grown up as orphans, relying on each other, scrapping by in a small town (likely in the Lille area, like so many of Bonnell's films, but the location is not specified.) Although the scrapping is mostly left to Aurelien, who works a minimal wage job and traffik in stolen copper to make ends meet. In contrast, the carefree Argine hits the local club each night, flirting and having relationships with many at once, getting drunk and pregnant; she cannot hold on to jobs. Her brother is like a parent, changing her clothes, washing her when she is wasted as if she is a pre-teen; they have a quasi-incestuous but non-physical relationship. In a climatic scene he confronts her with her parasitic lifestyle, but she hits back with an accusation that is dead on; they are so codependent he cannot live without her either. Eventually she chooses him over one of her lovers.
Compared with the family dynamics, the crime thriller portion of the film is downright anticlimatic. The main takeaway is the depression and economic struggle of small town France. It is a gritty, Doesoevsky-drenched outing by director Bonnell, usually focused on matters of the heart in more affluent (but not that affluent) parts of Northen France. His _Le Chignon d'Olga_, made in his 20s, has wowed critics (when art-house critics were still pretty good) with its young ensemble cast's naturalism and humanism. Florence Loiret Caille is, needless to say, a major reason for its success, but Bonnell manages to coax such superb performance from everyone. His later films feature much more elaborate blocking and composition. _Just a Sigh_ switches to the furtive relationship between two older would-be lovers, _All About Them_, a modern variation on _Jules and Jim_ perhaps, returns to Lille and to his concerns with young adults. I wish I have a chance to see his more recent TV series and movies soon; this is a more interesting and subtle, if low-key, filmmaker than many big name French filmmakers (like Cedric Klapisch) working in the same space.
