May 12, 2026
FILM: TWO WOMEN
DIRECTED BY: CHLOE ROBICHAUD
WRITTEN BY: CATHERINE LEGER
STARRING: KARINE GONTHIER-HYNDMAN, LAURENCE LEBOEUF, MANI SOLEYMANLOU
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
It’s winter as two women watch from separate apartments as a man attempts to put a tarp over what appears to be a shed in the middle of heavy blowing snow. They don’t know each other yet but their paths will cross because of the frustrations they have with the men in their lives. Two Women is a French work from Canadian filmmaker Chloe Robichaud. It’s billed as a comedy but the laughs, if any, arise from how these women decide to start breaking from their lives through various sexual encounters. It’s far from laugh-out loud funny but it does offer an interesting alternate perspective on couples and monogamy.
The film is really a study about how people deal with life after the honeymoon phase has ended. In the case of Violette (Laurence Leboeuf), she’s dealing with a new born and a husband who is secretly having an affair. She seems a bit naïve and lost. She hears the sound of crows in the air but thinks it may be coming from her neighbor Florence’s (Karine Gonthier-Hyndman) apartment. She imagines that Florence and her husband are having loud, wild sex and her cries are similar to that of a crow. After the two meet it becomes clear that in fact Florence and her “partner” David (Mani Soleymanlou) have not had sex in years. This lack of fulfillment in their personal lives is what binds the two women.
This is not the kind of story where they find each other and develop a sexual relationship, rather it is how they begin exploring the inner sides of themselves which becomes the crux of the film. Florence, in particular, begins having sex with any repair man that enters her home, from an exterminator to a cable guy, painter, and plumber. Violette begins having her own experiences which come off as a bit more awkward than Florence’s more driven style. These scenes bring some mild amusement as they are the highlights of the film and of these characters’ hum drum lives.
The film seems to also be exploring the effects of anti-depressants on one’s sex drive. Florence has been on them for years but decides to stop taking them to help her libido. When she does, it thus broadens her life, for better or worse. All of the characters seem to have some level of depression or anxiety. Perhaps Robichaud is suggesting that we are over-medicated as a society thus messing up even more our already screwed up lives.
The script also offers discussions about monogamy as something that is not natural and created by man. One character mentions that they believe there are “infinite kinds of pleasure” so why limit oneself to a staid lifestyle that may be unsatisfying. Is a stable home life really that important – even if kids are involved? (Florence has a ten-year-old.)
One could certainly take issue with this idea depending on their perspective on coupling and parenting but the point is well-made. The film doesn’t really illustrate what the end result will be for one of the women by the story’s end. Should she live free like a bird or does a family unit and medication offer something more satisfying than a series of one-night stands?
It is interesting to see men being viewed as objects here though. Too often we’ve seen the situation reversed. While the film at times feels like only a series of sexual encounters it does offer a unique and thought-provoking perspective on women and their differing social and sexual needs.
Two Women opens this Friday in Chicago.
FILM: TWO WOMEN
DIRECTED BY: CHLOE ROBICHAUD
WRITTEN BY: CATHERINE LEGER
STARRING: KARINE GONTHIER-HYNDMAN, LAURENCE LEBOEUF, MANI SOLEYMANLOU
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
It’s winter as two women watch from separate apartments as a man attempts to put a tarp over what appears to be a shed in the middle of heavy blowing snow. They don’t know each other yet but their paths will cross because of the frustrations they have with the men in their lives. Two Women is a French work from Canadian filmmaker Chloe Robichaud. It’s billed as a comedy but the laughs, if any, arise from how these women decide to start breaking from their lives through various sexual encounters. It’s far from laugh-out loud funny but it does offer an interesting alternate perspective on couples and monogamy.
The film is really a study about how people deal with life after the honeymoon phase has ended. In the case of Violette (Laurence Leboeuf), she’s dealing with a new born and a husband who is secretly having an affair. She seems a bit naïve and lost. She hears the sound of crows in the air but thinks it may be coming from her neighbor Florence’s (Karine Gonthier-Hyndman) apartment. She imagines that Florence and her husband are having loud, wild sex and her cries are similar to that of a crow. After the two meet it becomes clear that in fact Florence and her “partner” David (Mani Soleymanlou) have not had sex in years. This lack of fulfillment in their personal lives is what binds the two women.
This is not the kind of story where they find each other and develop a sexual relationship, rather it is how they begin exploring the inner sides of themselves which becomes the crux of the film. Florence, in particular, begins having sex with any repair man that enters her home, from an exterminator to a cable guy, painter, and plumber. Violette begins having her own experiences which come off as a bit more awkward than Florence’s more driven style. These scenes bring some mild amusement as they are the highlights of the film and of these characters’ hum drum lives.
The film seems to also be exploring the effects of anti-depressants on one’s sex drive. Florence has been on them for years but decides to stop taking them to help her libido. When she does, it thus broadens her life, for better or worse. All of the characters seem to have some level of depression or anxiety. Perhaps Robichaud is suggesting that we are over-medicated as a society thus messing up even more our already screwed up lives.
The script also offers discussions about monogamy as something that is not natural and created by man. One character mentions that they believe there are “infinite kinds of pleasure” so why limit oneself to a staid lifestyle that may be unsatisfying. Is a stable home life really that important – even if kids are involved? (Florence has a ten-year-old.)
One could certainly take issue with this idea depending on their perspective on coupling and parenting but the point is well-made. The film doesn’t really illustrate what the end result will be for one of the women by the story’s end. Should she live free like a bird or does a family unit and medication offer something more satisfying than a series of one-night stands?
It is interesting to see men being viewed as objects here though. Too often we’ve seen the situation reversed. While the film at times feels like only a series of sexual encounters it does offer a unique and thought-provoking perspective on women and their differing social and sexual needs.
Two Women opens this Friday in Chicago.