‘Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris’ Star Lesley Manville on Playing Against Type and Wearing Dior Dresses
variety.comWilson Chapman editorAs the title character of “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris,” Lesley Manville charms nearly everyone she encounters: homeless men on the streets of Paris, the heads of the Dior fashion house (including Christian Dior himself), models, dressmakers and racehorse track operators.
Even the more snobbish people she encounters eventually find themselves taken in by Ada, a kindhearted but tough English cleaning lady who — following the devastating news that her missing-in-action husband has been declared dead by the British army — makes it her life’s mission to acquire a Dior dress and live out her dreams of glamour.For people who know Manville best from her Oscar-nominated work on 2017’s “Phantom Thread,” where she played cynical and tough-minded fashion house manager Cyril, seeing Manville as the outsider in the world of high fashion may initially feel like a bit of an in-joke.
But Manville makes it easy to forget all her past roles with the film, bringing a lovely sense of dignity and longing to Ada’s seemingly frivolous pursuit of a dress that gives the frothy film some grounding.
For the veteran actor, the film is the start for a busy few months with many projects ahead — not the least of which including Netflix’s blockbuster series “The Crown,” which will have her replace Helena Bonham Carter in the role of Princess Margaret.
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