Number One (2017) User Reviews

Corporate Knife-Fight

[Minnesota_Reid · 7/10 · 18 April 2018]

The excellent Emmanuelle Devos here plays a top executive in a major energy / construction firm, who is recruited to become a candidate for the top job in the national water company, one of France's prestigious Top 40 companies. The campaign is very nasty, with plenty of corporate backstabbing, intrigue, and dirty deals.

Since she would be the first woman CEO of such a company in France, she automatically inherits the enthusiastic support of a major feminist group, which has connections and some pull. The film interestingly hints that Devos' character is far more interested in what she can do in the job than in gender politics, but she plays the cards she is dealt.

The film does a very good job of demonstrating why Devos' character is very good at her current job. She works very hard, knows the technical stuff, and can party with her Chinese clients in Mandarin, even singing sentimental Chinese songs with them.

The story of the campaign for the new job is unfortunately a bit murky at times, but the main maneuvers are clear enough. And the main bad guys, her rival -- slick and charming and lizard-like -- and his sleazy sidekick, are very well portrayed slimeballs, not the usual one dimensional caricatures.

Lástima, podía haber sido mucho mejor. Too bad, it could have been much better

[Andres-Camara · 5/10 · 18 November 2018]

Es una película, de esas de política, que pueden ser muy buenas. El problema es cuando no se toman todos los partes del cine en serio. En este caso, como pueden hacer una película así, con esta iluminación, ideal para sacarte completamente de la película. Tiene muy buenas cosas, pero a mí, al menos no me mete por ese motivo.

Los actores están muy bien. Todos son muy creíbles Si bien, el guion, tiene algunos momentos en los que pega saltos, que luego tienes que cerrar tú. Pero este tipo de películas, tienen guiones de este tipo.

La iluminación es una pena. ¿Cómo se puede iluminar la intriga con una luz blanca? Parece que te está contando una comedia de bajo presupuesto y sin embargo es una película política, de intrigas y suspense.

Tiene una dirección que a pesar de no controlar la iluminación, al menos no aburre. Te lleva hacia delante. No sabe colocar la cámara para narrar con ella pero bueno, al menos hace una película que se ve.

Podría haber sido mucho mejor, es una pena.

It's a movie, one of those politics, that can be very good. The problem is when you do not take all parts of the cinema seriously. In this case, as you can make a film like that, with this lighting, ideal to get completely out of the movie. He has very good things, but at least he does not get me for that reason.

The actors are very good. They are all very credible Although, the script, has some moments in which jumps, then you have to close you. But this kind of movies, they have scripts of this type.

The lighting is a pity. How can the intrigue be illuminated with a white light? It seems that he is telling you a low budget comedy and yet it is a political movie, about intrigue and suspense.

It has an address that despite not controlling the lighting, at least it does not bore. It takes you forward. He does not know how to put the camera to narrate with her but well, at least he makes a movie that he sees.

It could have been much better, it's a shame

An interesting topic is not enough

[johnpierrepatrick · 5/10 · 7 March 2020]

Good topic, contemporary in our modern society. However a good topic is only a part of a good movie. A good story is needed and here we follow all that can be expected to the letter, without any suspense or having a connexion with the characters. We can even not avoid to thing to Isabelle Kocher and Engie with the choice of the company type: was it inconceivable to set the story in a company where we have not in reality the only CEO woman??

I have to say, not everything is bad, we have for example the first board meeting that creates a nice atmosphere with Emmanuelle Devos among all these men. But the movie needs to be not a requisitory that shows every possible argument and situation in favor of. It needs to propose us a story we are taken into.

A woman's world

[searchanddestroy-1 · 11 October 2017]

This is the story of a woman in her forties who is a big executive in a huge company and whom is offered the possibility to become the big big executive. And this character, played by Emmanuelle Devos is not ruthless at all, although being pretty ambitious. But not at any cost, as we could have expected. At least me. I would have preferred this scheme. Unfortunately, it is rather predictable, boring, but not corny either. A film made by a woman and for women. Why not?

A woman in a world of male CEOs

[danybur · 8/10 · 7 January 2021]

An important executive of a private energy company (Emmanuele Devos) is contacted by a feminist group of influential women to propose that she compete for the management of an important French joint venture, one of whose sectors is water, starting from there a series of confrontations and intrigues.

The number one is a corporate drama very different from the one we are used to in American cinema. Although the gender issue is central to accessing relevant positions in a male-dominated business world, the protagonist's own doubts about this position and the lack of sense of deed add many nuances to the story.

The subtlety and sharpness with which Tonie Marshall (director and co-writer) describes the differences involved in being an important CEO for a woman, especially between her peers, and articulates them with her private life is remarkable. Of course, the battles and intrigues for corporate power would also have occurred with a male applicant, but the film highlights the differences. The general picture is realistic due to its contradictions without falling into cynicism and with a clear message that is never found in the pamphlet.

An outstanding cast participates, led by the great Emmanuelle Devos, who provokes the immediate empathy of the viewer and an interesting Richard Berry as her opponent.