Twentysomething Claire (Anaïs Demoustier) is nearly drowning in sorrow following the sudden death of her lifelong friend Laura. Nonetheless, she pledged to look after Laura’s widower David (Roman Duris) and newborn daughter Lucie. This promise is thrown into uncertainty when Claire drops by unannounced and discovers David dressed in women’s clothing. He explains that Laura knew about his proclivities, and that her presence diminished their urgency. However, his wife’s passing has reawakened David’s needs, which he indulges as a coping method and to soothe a now-motherless Lucie. Claire is initially appalled, but she slowly warms to David’s friendship, or at least the company of his new identity, Virginia, who bears an eerie resemblance to poor departed Laura.
Director Francois Ozon adapted The New Girlfriend from British suspense novelist Ruth Rendell’s short story. In the process, he transmutes it from florid Brian De Palma fodder into a work that is somewhat drier, wittier, and distinctly French. It’s easy to discern what Ozon found appealing about Claire and Virginia’s strange relationship, with its ghoulish implications, power imbalances, and erotic electricity. The filmmaker has often been drawn to peculiar social scenarios, which he diligently follows to alternately fascinating (In the House) and underwhelming (Hideaway) places.
Although The New Girlfriend is a standard coming out drama in its broad strokes, Ozon and his performers find enough cockeyed angles in the material to create a faintly mischievous and discomfiting film. The shortfalls of gender labels are one of the film’s crucial unspoken concerns, as are the potential fluidity of sexuality and the often perverse ways that people mourn their loved ones. While the film occasionally strays into mawkishness and soap opera absurdity---there is an honest-to-God coma subplot—The New Girlfriend contains enough absorbing, knotty elements to satisfy even viewers who prefer cold-hearted realism.
The New Girlfriend opens Friday, September 25 at the Tivoli Theatre, 6350 Delmar.
