We are taken to an African funeral. The women are sitting around the living room chanting. When a mysterious looking woman arrives with a teenager, the chanting stops. The ladies are puzzled and confused, why had this woman come to Prudence's wake? We soon find out, when Therese, the new arrival, asks to see the dead woman. Therese had come to ask forgiveness for all the harm she did to Prudence.
In flashbacks, we get to know the story. Prudence, an entrepreneurial woman from the Congo, had emigrated to Paris, where, through hard work, she was able to have two restaurants, specializing in African cuisine. Now, as her story begins, she is opening a third one. She is married to Maurice, a younger man. Even though she is sterile, her marriage is solid.
One day, Maurice gets the news from home that he has married a local girl, who is still "intact". The girl is Therese, who prides herself in being a virgin. Before he realizes what has occurred, Therese arrives in Paris, thinking she is going to be Maurice's wife. Feeling he was manipulated by his parents, Maurice passes the girl as a cousin that comes to work in France. Things start going haywire for Maurice because of his guilt in being the man in the middle. This will lead to Prudence's unhappiness when she realizes Maurice was weak enough to have impregnated Therese during her absence.
"La rivale" was recently shown in a French cable channel. Directed by Edouard Carrion, and written by the director in collaboration with Laurentine Milebo, the star of the film. It is a comedy that shows the life of African immigrants in France. At the same time, it is a clash of life styles when two cultures try to live side by side. The life in Paris stands in quite contrast with the practices of the old world these people left behind as they went to a land that offered opportunities they never could get back home.
Laurentine Milebo, is Prudence. She plays her Prudence with panache. She is a self made woman enjoying the fruit of her work. Not being able to give her younger man a child, will result in losing him to another woman in spite of his love. Tatiana Rojo is a beautiful woman. Her Therese shows a natural talent that surprises. Claude-Alexander Eclar plays Maurice and the formidable Marius Yelolo appears as the wise Papa Simon.
In flashbacks, we get to know the story. Prudence, an entrepreneurial woman from the Congo, had emigrated to Paris, where, through hard work, she was able to have two restaurants, specializing in African cuisine. Now, as her story begins, she is opening a third one. She is married to Maurice, a younger man. Even though she is sterile, her marriage is solid.
One day, Maurice gets the news from home that he has married a local girl, who is still "intact". The girl is Therese, who prides herself in being a virgin. Before he realizes what has occurred, Therese arrives in Paris, thinking she is going to be Maurice's wife. Feeling he was manipulated by his parents, Maurice passes the girl as a cousin that comes to work in France. Things start going haywire for Maurice because of his guilt in being the man in the middle. This will lead to Prudence's unhappiness when she realizes Maurice was weak enough to have impregnated Therese during her absence.
"La rivale" was recently shown in a French cable channel. Directed by Edouard Carrion, and written by the director in collaboration with Laurentine Milebo, the star of the film. It is a comedy that shows the life of African immigrants in France. At the same time, it is a clash of life styles when two cultures try to live side by side. The life in Paris stands in quite contrast with the practices of the old world these people left behind as they went to a land that offered opportunities they never could get back home.
Laurentine Milebo, is Prudence. She plays her Prudence with panache. She is a self made woman enjoying the fruit of her work. Not being able to give her younger man a child, will result in losing him to another woman in spite of his love. Tatiana Rojo is a beautiful woman. Her Therese shows a natural talent that surprises. Claude-Alexander Eclar plays Maurice and the formidable Marius Yelolo appears as the wise Papa Simon.