MARIUS ET JEANETTE (1998)
ROBERT GUEDIGUIAN
Plot
Nominated for seven French Cesar awards, and winner of the Best Actress award for Ariane Ascaride. Jeanette is a single mum scraping a living as a check-out girl in L'Estaque, the impoverished northern district of Marseilles. After her fiery temper puts her out of a job, she meets security guard Marius, and the pair embark on a volatile affair. When Marius goes AWOL, the world-weary Jeanette puts it down to typical male thoughtlessness, and only her friends bother to investigate. A beautifully crafted picture of working-class Mediterranean life.