# Beautiful Mother
**Beautiful Mother** (French: *Belle maman*) is a 1999 French romantic comedy directed by Gabriel Aghion, in which a lawyer falls in love with his mother-in-law on the day of his wedding. It stars [Catherine Deneuve](https://www.edgepedia.org/catherine-deneuve) as Léa, Vincent Lindon as Antoine, and Mathilde Seigner as Séverine, and runs 102 minutes.[1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | *Belle maman*; released in English as *Beautiful Mother*[1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html) |
| Director and writers | Gabriel Aghion; screenplay by Aghion and Danièle Thompson, from a novel by Jean-Marie Duprez[1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html) |
| Lead cast | Catherine Deneuve (Léa), Vincent Lindon (Antoine), Mathilde Seigner (Séverine), Line Renaud (Nicou), Stéphane Audran (Brigitte)[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181310/fullcredits/) |
| Release | France 10 March 1999; Belgium 24 March 1999; Japan 12 June 1999 (French film festival); Hungary 21 October 1999[3](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%BC%82%E4%BA%AE%E5%B2%B3%E6%AF%8D/2653087?fromModule=lemma_inlink) |
| Recognition | Line Renaud nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the 2000 César Awards (25th edition)[3](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%BC%82%E4%BA%AE%E5%B2%B3%E6%AF%8D/2653087?fromModule=lemma_inlink) |
| Reception | IMDb 5.5/10 from about 1,080 votes; FilmAffinity 5.4/10 from 27 votes[4](https://www.filmvandaag.nl/film/26583-belle-maman) • [1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
On the very day of his marriage to Séverine, the lawyer Antoine allows his attentions to wander toward his future mother-in-law, Léa, a 50-something career woman. When he reveals his interest, Léa insists there is no way they can have an affair. The family reunites at Léa's hotel in the Bahamas to celebrate the 70th birthday of her mother Nicou, a lesbian who shares her life with the slightly deranged Brigitte. Although his wife has just given birth, Antoine remains drawn to Léa, and she realizes she too may be in love.[1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html) Dutch and other summaries describe the same arc: the groom falls for his mother-in-law at first sight, follows her to the Bahamas and seduces her, while she is planning to remarry and he has just become a father, raising the question of whether the mother will sacrifice herself for her daughter's happiness.[4](https://www.filmvandaag.nl/film/26583-belle-maman) • [7](https://www.moviemeter.com/movies/comedy/belle-maman)
## Production
The film was written by Gabriel Aghion with Danièle Thompson and adapted from a novel by Jean-Marie Duprez.[1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html) Bruno Pésery produced, Bruno Coulais composed the music, Romain Winding was the cinematographer, Luc Barnier edited, and Dan Weil was the production designer.[5](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/beautiful-mother/cast/2030337920/) Production companies were TF1 Films Production, Arena Films, and Caméra One.[1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html)
The cast placed Deneuve, then in a phase of her career moving into popular film comedy, alongside Vincent Lindon, Mathilde Seigner, Line Renaud, Stéphane Audran, Jean Yanne, and [Idris Elba](https://www.edgepedia.org/idris-elba) as Grégoire, an early screen appearance for the later star of *The Wire*.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181310/fullcredits/) • [6](https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9781526141439_A40541513/preview-9781526141439_A40541513.pdf)
## Release and reception
The film opened in France on 10 March 1999, followed by Belgium on 24 March, a Japanese festival screening on 12 June, and Hungary on 21 October.[3](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%BC%82%E4%BA%AE%E5%B2%B3%E6%AF%8D/2653087?fromModule=lemma_inlink) At the 2000 [César Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/cesar-awards), Line Renaud received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress.[3](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%BC%82%E4%BA%AE%E5%B2%B3%E6%AF%8D/2653087?fromModule=lemma_inlink)
Audience ratings have been modest: 5.5/10 on IMDb from about 1,080 votes, 5.4/10 on FilmAffinity from 27 votes, and 6.9/10 on the Turkish site Sinemalar from 8 votes.[4](https://www.filmvandaag.nl/film/26583-belle-maman) • [1](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html) • [8](https://www.sinemalar.com/film/74624/beautiful-mother) A contemporary-style plot summary describes it as a comedy with outrageous characters and surreal scenes of decadent Parisian life, culminating in a moment of almost Arcadian symbolism.[9](https://www.film1k.com/beautiful-mother-1999-belle-maman.html)
## Other films with the same English title
The English title *Beautiful Mother* is also attached to a Chinese film directed by Sun Zhou, discussed in scholarship on motherhood in Chinese cinema as an example of the glamorous, privileged mother figure; in it a woman quits a good job to take better care of her son's life.[10](https://bcpublication.org/index.php/SSH/article/download/3479/3417/3387) • [11](https://arena-council.org/arenac/en/download/Publication/arena/Asian%20Exchange%20China%20Reflected.pdf) It is distinct from the 1999 French comedy.
## References
1. [Beautiful Mother (1999), FilmAffinity](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film513233.html)
2. [Beautiful Mother (1999) – Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181310/fullcredits/)
3. [漂亮岳母 (Belle maman), Baidu Baike](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%BC%82%E4%BA%AE%E5%B2%B3%E6%AF%8D/2653087?fromModule=lemma_inlink)
4. [Belle maman (1999), FilmVandaag.nl](https://www.filmvandaag.nl/film/26583-belle-maman)
5. [Beautiful Mother – Full Cast & Crew, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/beautiful-mother/cast/2030337920/)
6. [From perversion to purity: The stardom of Catherine Deneuve](https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9781526141439_A40541513/preview-9781526141439_A40541513.pdf)
7. [Belle Maman (1999), MovieMeter.com](https://www.moviemeter.com/movies/comedy/belle-maman)
8. [Beautiful Mother (Belle Maman), Sinemalar.com](https://www.sinemalar.com/film/74624/beautiful-mother)
9. [Beautiful Mother (1999) Belle maman, Film1k](https://www.film1k.com/beautiful-mother-1999-belle-maman.html)
10. [BCP Social Sciences & Humanities article on Chinese cinema](https://bcpublication.org/index.php/SSH/article/download/3479/3417/3387)
11. [Class and Gender, Asian Exchange: China Reflected](https://arena-council.org/arenac/en/download/Publication/arena/Asian%20Exchange%20China%20Reflected.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 1995 to 1999 › Black and satirical comedies › Released in 1999*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license