Marie-Line

This is a story about a women-only cleaning team for a supermarket in the suburbs of a large city in a somewhat bleak part of France. The team leader is played by squat actress Muriel Robin, previously known mostly for her one-woman comic shows. Her character is hard working, driven, uncompromising, often harsh, and she covets a prize for best cleaning team of the supermarket.

Despite this, despite being affiliated along with her flailing husband to a far-right political party, and despite being abused by the store manager, she reveals a tenderness for her (often illegal aliens) teammates, that is simply stunning and overwhelming. This is probably Mehdi Charef's best film to date, profoundly moving and intelligent. It was without a doubt one of the 2 best movies i saw in 2000.