Strand Picks Up Berlin Film Fest Entry ‘Service Entrance’

Strand Releasing have been plucking select French cinema titles over the years (Breillat’s Bluebeard, Ozon’s Le Refuge and Téchiné’s The Girl on the Train) but their latest pick-up in Philippe Le Guay’s comedy definitely goes against their usual targeted title as it’s neither dramatic nor does it come from a filmmaker name that is familiar to North American auds. Service Entrance — the Berlin Film Festival Out of Competition selected title which when translated literally would mean “The Women of the sixth floor” will probably be released midway in the calendar.

Gist: Set in Paris, 1960, Jean Louis Joubert (Luchini) lives a peaceful, yet boring bourgeois existence with this wife (Kiberlain), a perfect socialite, the conservative couple has their world turned upside down when Spanish maids, Concepcion (Maura) and her niece Maria (Verbeke) integrate into the Joubert family when they work and comingle with them.

Worth Noting: This is Fabrice Luchini and Sandrine Kiberlain’s third time being paired for the big screen…their first pairing was in 96’s Beaumarchais the Scoundrel.

Do We Care?: Pick-ups of this year’s Berlinale comp titles have been few and far between — so we’re extra curious as to what this bourgeoisie learning a lesson narrative has going for it. We’re happy that Carmen Maura is among the clan of dust bunny specialists….see trailer below.