The Women On The 6th Floor (12A)

The Women On The 6th Floor or, as it is known in French, Les femmes du 6ème étage is easy-going, feel-good French cinema at its very best.

In 1960s Paris, wealthy stock-broker Jean-Louis lives a staid bourgeois existence with his neurotic socialite wife Suzanne while their children are away at boarding school. The couple’s world is turned upside-down when they hire Maria, a Spanish maid, who introduces Jean-Louis to an alternative reality a just few stories up on the 6th floor servants' quarters, where the women teach him there’s more to life than stocks and bonds, and their influence on the house ultimately transforms everyone’s lives. A lively and charming upstairs/downstairs comedy which premiered at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival to a standing ovation.

For all this film is a gentle tale about a group of Spanish maids, the director still manages to make some poignant comments on class and politics.  This tale allows audience to discover a little about European life in the era of Mad Men. If you have enjoyed French films such as Potiche, Romantics Anonymous and Beautiful Lies you are bound to enjoy this one. Being hailed by some as a funnier (French) version of The Help, this is a retro crowd-pleaser which has already been a massive hit on home soil. 

*Beautifully filmed, well acted and a topical reminder that success isn't about how much money you have, but how you live - and boil your eggs.* Birmingham Post

*Enjoyable, frequently funny French comedy with likable characters and a strong central premise* View London

The Women On The 6th Floor is screening on: Friday 24th at 7.45pm, Saturday 25th at 10.45am & 7.45pm and Tuesday 28th at 2pm.