Irresistible!
English business baron Andrew Blake has been devastated since the death of his beloved wife of 40 years. In an attempt to assuage his grief he decides to revisit the French country estate where they first met. A series of miscommunications sees him take on the role of butler, and he finds himself with a run-down chateau, an angry manager, a homeless pregnant housekeeper, a gun-wielding groundskeeper, circling creditors, and the owner who is herself still grieving the loss of her husband four years previously.
Directing and co-writing the adaptation of his own book ( “Complètement cramé ! ) is best-selling French novelist Gilles Legardinier. As a novice director he has sensibly chosen a cast that almost does the job for him. John Malkovich brings his unique style to the role of Andrew, making him both believable, and sympathetic, and delivering his lines in charming French. The utterly divine Fanny Ardant is more than a match for Malkovich in the role of matriarch Madame Beauvillier. Belgian actor Émilie Dequenne is a total delight as manager Odile. And the surprise star of the film is an adorable cat named Mephisto.
Mr Blake at Your Service is an unrepentantly feel-good heart-warmer. yet somehow manages to stop just before falling over the edge into schmaltz, aided in no short measure by the talents of Malkovich and Ardant. Also helping to keep it out of the corn patch are the dollops of classic Gallic humour.
Clearly made with a highly commercial market in mind, Mr Blake at Your Service is nonetheless a delicious, satisfying, and at times hysterically funny, piece of cinema, and another quirky choice of project for Malkovich.
