Film Review – Jeanne du Barry

Maiwenn has been acting for decades, but she’s probably best known for her role in 1997’s “The Fifth Element,” portraying Diva Plavalaguna (a.k.a. the blue opera singer). In an already highly bizarre film, Maiwenn managed to be one of its weirder additions, but she made an impression. She’s also been stacking directorial credits during her run, helming such efforts as 2015’s “Mon Roi.” Maiwenn shows a little more career ambition with “Jeanne du Barry,” which is a costume drama concerning the drive of a poor French woman trying to find independence in a world that has no patience for such desire. Created with a sizable scope and attention to costume and production design detail, “Jeanne du Barry” doesn’t radically subvert expectations, but Maiwenn oversees capable performances and some appealing emotional escalation. She gives the feature a little more feeling than anticipated, helping to melt some of the inherent iciness that comes with this type of endeavor. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com