The Page Turner

last updated 8 January 2015

In this creepy French thriller, a sexy piano student takes revenge on the woman who frustrated her ambition, said Jim Ridley in The Village Voice. 'œSure, The Page Turner looks and sounds like an NPR junkie's idea of thrill-crazy hothouse fare,' but director Denis Dercourt cleverly draws us in. MÃ©lanie, the icily inexpressive young blonde played by DÃ©borah FranÃ§ois, becomes a nanny in the home of Ariane, Catherine Frot's raven-haired recitalist. 'œAnyone who remembers The Hand That Rocks the Cradle will see the instruments of revenge laid out like cutlery in a slasher movie's kitchen.' But The Page Turner proves subtler than most such fare, said Andrew Sarris in The New York Observer. 'œDercourt never uses sinister camera angles to communicate MÃ©lanie's obsession with the older woman,' and FranÃ§ois keeps us guessing about her character's intentions to the end. The women eye each other like caged animals in several long, claustrophobic scenes during which Ariane plays piano and MÃ©lanie turns pages. And turns pages, and turns pages, said Jan Stuart in Newsday. Dercourt tries to wring too much tension from his somewhat far-fetched premise. 'œEighty-five minutes can seem much longer than it really is when you spend the entire time waiting for a shoe to drop.'

Rating: Not Rated