Brigitte (Isabelle Huppert – Amour) and Xavier (Jean-Pierre Darroussin – Le Havre) own a small farm in rural France. Years of comfortable, compatible living has left the couple cheerfully indifferent to the other's needs: he's something of a stick in the mud, she is open to adventure.

When a party at a neighbour's farm presents a young, attractive Parisian (Pio Marmaï), Brigitte's head is turned. On a pretext of visiting the doctor, she leaves Xavier at home with the cows and books a weekend in the capital.

Infidelity is a staple of French cinema and Marc Fitoussi (Copacabana, also starring Huppert) doesn't stray too far from the basics. Follies Bergere is an enjoyable exploration of a marriage that's not exactly worn out, but has all the frisson of a pair of sensible shoes. Comfortable, certainly. Exciting? Not so much. Naturally things don't go to plan in Paris, yet Brigitte does find adventure in an unlikely quarter.

Working from his own screenplay, Fitoussi doesn't need to do a lot. Huppert and Darroussin have a terrific chemistry that brings the material to life without resorting to tricks or cliché. It makes for a rewarding experience that gets better with a couple of unexpected treats resting toward the end of the narrative. A scene in which Xavier quietly engages with his son, an acrobat whose drive and talent the farmer simply hasn't understood, is simple, effective and touching. It speaks to the light hand that Fitoussi employs to make some considered points.

There's little that's especially new about Follies Bergere, adultery has been well covered by French filmmakers present and past. Yet Fitoussi's observations about the mechanics of marriage speak volumes in their apparent simplicity. There is something of the good side of sensible shoes about the experience, you know what to expect from their familiarity. And you're ok with that because sometimes, a good story is worth telling again.

// COLIN FRASER

Previewed at Sony Theatre, Sydney on November 12, 2014