In the French dramedy “Alice,” an overextended young mother wakes up one morning to find that her husband has disappeared, having secretly spent her entire inheritance on luxury escorts. Stuck with a mortgage, a furious Alice (Emilie Piponnier) goes to the escort agency frequented by her husband — a bright pink parlor where campy madams titter about their elite clientele. After a chat with a free-spirited escort, Lisa (Chloé Boreham), Alice gives the gig a shot herself.
Directed by Josephine Mackerras, “Alice” presents sex work as a potentially empowering option for women. The film is mostly light and frothy, painting a rosy picture of the world of high-end escorts: The pay is good, the hours are flexible and the clients — often played for laughs — are meek and easy to please.
Tensions do arise, but mainly from Alice’s personal life: child care struggles, her hypocritical husband. Otherwise, Alice relishes her newfound independence, while Lisa offers soap-boxy spiels about reclaiming control over one’s sexuality. She notes, at one point, that escorts like them should not be confused with victims of human trafficking.
But what makes their jobs so safe and freeing? Do the female bosses ensure that the work is fair? Does the agency provide them with protections? Mackerras doesn’t go into these details. And a single moment of menace during one of Alice’s appointments turns quickly comic, exposing the movie’s glibness. “Alice” (rightfully) regards the choices of its heroine with respect and empathy. But its picture of sex work as an easy out, devoid of any real danger, feels like a simplistic fantasy.
Alice
Not rated. In French, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 43 minutes. Watch in select virtual theaters.
Source: Movies - nytimes.com
