OTTAWALIFE MAGAZINE: “Waiting for Bojangles” stars two incredible actors who deliver the best performances of the year.
September 2, 2022
"Virginie Efira is one of the most talented actors today. If you’ve read any of my previous reviews of films, I haven’t exactly kept those feelings a secret. Recently, her roles in Benedetta and Madeleine Collins have been very impressive. She’s a Belgian actress whose roles are usually in French and thus subtitled.
Efira is underrated from a North American audience perspective but not so much in Europe, where she is consistently nominated for awards. I truly admire her ability to excel in multiple genres. As a true actor, she becomes her character leaving no trace of the last role she inhabited. Some actors can only do one style of film, not Ms. Efira.
Historically, she is the best part of any film she is in. Not always, of course, but a significant amount of the time. Not this time. This time, she has a fantastic co-lead in Romain Duris. Duris recently was in the film Eiffel, portraying the architect behind the famous tower, Gustave Eiffel, but it was in The New Girlfriend where he gets my profound respect. The 2014 movie is a must-see and solidified Duris as a very talented actor.
In Waiting for Bojangles, we meet Georges (Duris). Georges is a bit of a hustler as he makes up stories to endear people to him. He meets Camille (Efira), who seems to share that same quality. They are very spontaneous together. In a world where people ask ‘why?’, they seem to live by a ‘why not?’ philosophy. The two have a very carefree style, and their relationship quickly develops. They have a son who also inherits their skill for ‘tall tales,’ and everything seems splendid.
They like to party and be the center of attention by proxy of their personalities."
