About fifteen years ago I began to develop a strong appreciation for British actress Lesley Manville.  It was seeing her in the Mike Leigh film Another Year and realizing, with quite a start, that she greatly reminded me of Gloria Grahame, or perhaps of the actress Gloria might have become had she been given better opportunities to become a character actress (and not died far too early).  I have seen Miss Manville several times since that film and have enjoyed her work a great deal.  In this film she is given a rare leading role and of course she nails it with charm and intelligence.

Anthony Fabian’s adaptation of the Paul Gallico story finds modest British cleaning woman Mrs. Harris (Lesley Manville) suddenly smitten with a Christian Dior gown one of her employers owns.  On a whim Mrs. Harris decides to save enough of her earnings to visit Paris and buy a gown for herself.  Her journey invokes skepticism and even alarm from her friends and rejection and even contempt from the French people she meets.  But Mrs. Harris perseveres, makes new friends, stands up for herself and even leads oppressed women toward better lives, all in her quest to touch and wear some of the finer things at least once in her life.

History is subtly altered in this satin and chiffon fable, yet its charms are undeniable.  It is an underdog story that powerfully reinforces the notion that one person can and often does make a difference.  In this case not only does Mrs. Harris finally achieve her goal but she essentially pushes the Dior brand to a new prominence and a better way of doing business in the late 1950s.  I also feel that women who adore couture and clothing trends may find this film even more appealing than I did, because I have little appreciation for such things.

I do enjoy the film and especially the performances but I don’t love it.  Its balancing act between the desire to remain classy and somewhat nostalgic while trying not to be too comic results in a pleasing but quiet middle ground where nothing is too funny nor too dramatic.  For a better, livelier version of a similar-type story I recommend the underrated comedy Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, a 2008 lark starring Frances McDormand and Amy Adams.  Both of these films have delights but Miss Pettigrew‘s are superior.  ☆ ☆ 1/2.  21 October 2026.