Copacabana (2010)

Directed by: Marc Fitoussi | 107 minutes | comedy | Actors: Isabelle Huppert, Aure Atika, Lolita Chammah, Jurgen Delnaet, Chantal Banlier, Magali Woch, Nelly Antignac, Guillaume Gouix, Joachim Lombard, Noémie Lvovsky, Luis Rego, Cyril Couton, François Comar, Léonie Simaga, Veerle Dobbelaere, Simone Milsdatter, Valentijn Dhaenens, Eric Savin, Lise Lamétrie

The French comedy ‘Copacabana’ is not set on the sunny beaches of Rio, but on the less flashy coast of Ostend. There we meet Babou, an energetic bon vivant with his heart (just) in the right place. She is the type that takes care of bums but hardly has time for her own daughter. A woman who dances alone in a crowded bar, not because she adores attention but because she just likes to dance.

Babou is a type that attracts and repels at the same time, a bit like a smoked-in aunt of Poppy from Mike Leigh’s ‘Happy-Go-Lucky’. Not every film buff will be charmed by such an eccentric, who makes noise in the library, leaves a patisserie in chaos and uses her Flemish lover as a comforter. Anyone who can muster sympathy for Babou will be treated to one of the nicest comedies of the year.

This is largely due to Isabelle Huppert in the title role. Everything shows that Huppert fully understands her character. Although Babou breaks enough, it never happens out of ill will. She makes wrong choices, but they are choices she sincerely believes in herself. In the end, in her own clumsy way, she tries her best to please everyone, her actions springing not from selfishness but from an overly great love of life.

Although Huppert is the radiant center of it all, it is the secondary characters that lift the film to a higher level. Actresses Lolita Chammah and Aure Atika make sure that their stereotypical characters of conservative daughter and bitchy boss don’t get bogged down in caricatures. With subtle play, they infuse their characters with enough humanity to move them (don’t forget those heartwarming smiles). Because the viewer eventually develops sympathy for almost all the characters, the mutual confrontations provide the little bit of drama that the film needs.

The humor in ‘Copacabana’ is more in dialogue and interaction than in the events. The less important characters also play a role here. It’s not just Babou’s dry remarks, but also her boss Lydie’s demotivating motivational speeches and daughter Esméralda’s outward movements when she tells her mother about her intended marriage.

That makes ‘Copacabana’ perhaps not the funniest comedy of the year, but it is one of the loveliest. Humour, acting and optimistic tone ensure that the sun even shines on the dull beaches of Ostend. Although that is no reason to consider a time-share apartment.