Most Americans (and wine enthusiasts around the world) are no stranger to Veuve Clicquot Champagnes and their distinctive, marigold-labeled bottles, signifying celebration and luxury.
But most non-French speakers wouldn’t understand the full name of the brand, and therefore, are missing out on the whole story.
The word “veuve” in French means “widow,” and so the name of the wine is also the name of the film about the woman behind the beloved bubbles.
“Widow Clicquot” is the biopic of Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin (played by Haley Bennett), who took over the wine business of her husband Francois (Tom Sturridge) when she was widowed in 1805 at age 27, making her the first female entrepreneur in France, and one of its most celebrated.
“Widow Clicquot” is adapted by Erin Dignam and Christopher Monger, from the book “The Widow Clicquot: The Story of a Champagne Empire and the Woman Who Ruled It” by Tilar J. Mazzeo.
The screenplay hits the big moments and skims the details, but it also leaves room for director Thomas Napper to lean into moments of lyrical dreaminess. The film is a rich blend of historicity and poetry, and reveals Barbe-Nicole’s story in a nonlinear fashion that starts out deeply romantic but becomes a more pragmatic, realistic tale as she leans into her power as a businesswoman.
This is Napper’s second feature as a director, though he has directed the second unit on many of Joe Wright’s films, which is why this feels very much like a Wright project. Lensed by Caroline Champetier, there is a certain ethereal sensuality to Napper’s direction of “Widow Clicquot” that’s evocative of Wright’s aesthetic; an earthy, wholesome beauty that’s tied to the land and its seasons.
It’s the land itself that starts Barbe-Nicole’s journey to creating one of France’s greatest Champagne empires. Immediately after his funeral, she’s propositioned to sell her husband’s vineyards to Monsieur Moët (Nicholas Farrell); though her father-in-law Phillipe (Ben Miles) disapproves, she has the right to do what she wants with the property as the inheritor of his will. Phillipe gives her a limited chance to prove she can run the vineyard as she sees fit, and she immediately dispenses with hierarchies of labor in order to operate as a “wheel,” which is initially a tough sell for her vineyard supervisors.
She continues on her quest to fulfill Francois’ dreams of winemaking on their land, always moving forward, and forging a close alliance with Louis Bohne (Sam Riley), a wine merchant and close confidant (and perhaps more intimate friend) of her late husband. If the vineyard is to be successful, Barbe-Nicole must be able to get her wares through Napoleonic embargoes, and she puts all of her trust in Louis to transport her precious cargo. She develops a new technique for making Champagne that becomes all the rage in St. Petersburg thanks to his canny salesmanship, and in their collaboration, they too become close, intimate friends, which sets off suspicion about the young widow.
All the while she is haunted by memories of Francois, each flashback revealing more and more nuance to the story. Initially it seems like they led an almost impossibly idyllic life of pastoral beauty and wine-soaked sensuality; Francois a sort of manic pixie vintner boy who lounges among the vines, teaching his wife tasting notes in bed. But her memories peel back to show more of his troubled, tormented character, the challenges she endured, and the complicated nature of his death.
It is much to unpack in a swift 90-minute film, and the script is weighted in favor of Barbe-Nicole’s emotional journey rather than her entrepreneurial one. It’s somewhat disappointing that short shrift is given to her innovative achievements in winemaking (which are still used to this day) in order to focus on the men in her life instead, even if historically, that was also the case. Nevertheless it is a worthy toast to the woman behind one of the most iconic Champagnes in the world.
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