Review of Hairdresser`s Husband, The

Introduction

`Le Mari de la coiffeuse` (The Hairdresser`s Husband) was originally released in 1990, and was deservedly nominated for 7 Cesars and a BAFTA. It`s arguably Patrice Leconte`s finest hour (though I personally enjoyed le Parfum D`Yvonne just as much); a sensual and sublime exploration of obsession and desire.

As a small boy Antoine becomes obsessed with the sensual delights of his trips to the local Hairdresser. When his father asks what he would one day like to be, he replies `married to a hairdresser` which earns him a slap across the face. Even his father can`t understand why he reacted so strongly to such a suggestion. `What did I do that for? Can anyone tell me what I did that for?`.

Some 40 years on Antoine (played by the magnificent Jean Rochefort) enters local Hairdressers and recognises the love of his life in Mathilde. (Played by the visually stunning Italian actress, Anna Galiena). By the end of his first haircut he has asked her to marry him and on his return just two weeks later for another cut she says that she will. Thus begins a passionate and all consuming relationship that seems to exist within an alternative world defined by the walls of the Hairdressing salon and the tiny flat upstairs.

The subtitles never get in the way here as the dialogue is refreshingly sparse. The movie has a gentle unhurried pace and yet is utterly bewitching. Maybe it`s the strength of the acting, with subtleties of facial movement and action, creating an alternative dialogue that needs no words, that makes this movie so good.

Certainly the cinematography helps. Every shot is considered and composition and choice of angle and position is key throughout. This is meticulous work and it shows.

The soundtrack, with it`s frequent use of Arabic music (Antoine loves to dance exotically to it) is really first class too - though is only really noticeable as the heavy strings signal it`s bleak ending. Maybe the overriding message here is that all things must pass - no matter how perfect they appear to be. One of the most curious aspects of the movie is that we never really learn much about Mathilde`s past, whilst Antoine`s is reflected in some detail. The movie, with its passions and obsessions, is clearly very much from the male point of view, arguably a trait it shares with other Leconte movies.

Video

A nice wide-screen edition with a very clear transfer that does this very visual film justice. There`s a gentle softness to shots that is the result of the lighting and stock and has nothing to do with transfer. Whether you like this or not is a matter of personal taste and in a digital age is a look that is increasingly uncommon. For my money, it perfectly matches the mood and atmosphere of the piece.

My only gripe is that the subtitles are a really cheesy italic with drop shadow. But I soon got over it...

Audio

A nice Digital Dolby Stereo soundtrack that is nicely balanced, very full and some of Nyman`s score (particularly towards the end of the film) will raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Nice!

Features

There`s a very curious inclusion here in the form of Leconte`s debut short movie, `La Famile Heureuse` which, lasting about 15 minutes or so, is the tale of an almost blissfully happy family, with two small children and a rather aged mother and father, who live an almost idyllic existence until one day the father boards up the house, sits in the top window with a gun and holds his family hostage. There`s a slightly larger than life surreal air to this that maybe was the undiluted version of an ingredient that plays in most of his subsequent work. It`s an interesting addition because it highlights his early care in shot construction and editing, even if the acting here is a little ham-fisted.

Conclusion

`The Hairdresser`s Husband` is one of those incredibly rare movies that only come around once every ten years or so. It`s a film with a storyline so fragile that it barely exists and yet it`s a powerful and emotive film - and almost breathtakingly beautiful.

Leconte seems very capable of tapping into elusive, half-defined emotions relating to obsession, love, and nostalgia. Yet his films communicate this beautifully, as if he`s somehow captured the essence of a thing, rather than the thing itself. And whilst there is often an air of unbridled sensuality to his films, he never resorts to vulgarity or explicit nudity.

The cinematography is brilliant, the score perfect and the performances just stunning. It`s a really beautiful movie with a strong air of melancholic nostalgia which is almost poetic, and it`s a film that, once finished, I felt I could watch again almost immediately.

If it all sounds too serious for your tastes, then I should mention that Rochefort`s Arabic dancing brings comic relief in abundance and this isn`t a difficult or intellectually challenging film by any stretch of the imagination. Heartily recommended!