A Conversation with Chloé Robichaud, writer Catherine Léger, Karine Gonthier-Hyndman & Laurence Leboeuf (TWO WOMEN)
Two Women, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, marks the latest feature from acclaimed Quebec filmmaker Chloé Robichaud (Sarah Prefers to Run, Boundaries). The French-language comedy, adapted from Catherine Léger’s stage play, inspired by the 1970s films of the same title, follows two neighbors who, despite having successful careers and families, find themselves questioning their lives and seeking liberation from societal expectations. Shot on 35mm film and set within the confines of a housing cooperative, the film features magnetic performances from Karine Gonthier-Hyndman (Les Simone) and Laurence Leboeuf (Transplant), whose nuanced portrayals of friendship and rebellion crackle with chemistry and authenticity in every scene.
I recently sat down with director Chloé Robichaud, writer Catherine Léger, and stars Karine Gonthier-Hyndman and Laurence Leboeuf to discuss their collaboration on this intimate exploration of female desire, motherhood, and the search for happiness in modern life. The film, produced by Amerique Film with support from SODEC and Telefilm Canada, continues Robichaud’s examination of complex female characters while showcasing Léger’s distinctive voice as one of Quebec’s most compelling contemporary writers.
Hammer To Nail: Catherine, what inspired you to revisit the 1970 films themes for today’s audience? And Chloé, what excited you about directing this modern take?
Catherine Léger: I was looking through the movies that exist about women’s sexuality and I found it was usually a very serious topic. I wanted to make a comedy from the women’s point of view. I thought they were great characters when I originally did it as a play. When I decided to make it a film it was not clear what bringing the characters from this film of the 70s into a modern context would do! It was really interesting to explore why they feel trapped and if they feel happy. I wanted to explore the dynamics of a bored couple. Sometimes having a child is the most amazing thing but it can also be difficult on the couple. Being a mother is great but for the relationship, a new person arriving, changes that dynamic and I was interested in exploring those themes.
Chloé Robichaud: I was very interested in working with Catherine because I was a fan of her work prior. That was the main reason I wanted to do the film. She has a very unique voice and is very nuanced, always looking at both sides. I also wanted to tell a story about female desire. These women want to express their sexuality on their own terms. I don’t think you see that often and the entry point to me was thinking, how can I tell this story from the women’s point of view. How do we represent female bodies on screen? It was fascinating for me to enter the film with all these questions and reflections in mind.
HTN: Can you talk about the location of the film and how that affected your performances/the story overall? It’s very central to the plot right off the bat.
Karine Gonthier-Hyndman: You should have seen the place before it was transformed by the team. It is a really tiny apartment. They had to actually break walls to give us more space. It added a lot for us. It was such a small place that I felt like that character, imprisoned, in those little rooms trying to make things work. It was part of the ambiance of shooting everything. That proximity I think is very important in the movie. The proximity between Laurence’s character and my character and the proximity that we have with our husbands. Even though we are disconnected we are always right next to each other. For example that sequence where I tell Laurence that I had an affair the night before while my husband is sitting right in front of me typing on his computer and my son is just doing his homework. That is part of life and it makes it funny that it all coexists.
Laurence Leboeuf: I think it also worked off set being in such a tight space. We would wait around in those sets, so close to each other, and it would add to the richness of our intimacy we required throughout the shoot. Our friendship and bond really strengthened because of it. We would hang out in our apartments. We would talk all the time in between takes.
Laurence Le Boeuf & Karine Gonthier-Hyndman in TWO WOMEN
HTN: You two see each other on the balcony and proceed to have a wild night at the bars in a great sequence. The billiards shot, Provocante by Marjo, which then leads to you cutting your wrists. From a writing and directing perspective what were you going for and from a performance perspective, your guy’s physicality in this moment says everything, talk about that.
KGH: For an actress, physicality is everything. There is everything that you say in a movie that is beautifully written in this case, but then there is your whole interior world that you need to build and all of that passes through the body. I think it was really interesting for Laurence and I,with those characters that are trying to be in contact again with their bodies, to see how that could manifest itself, not only through the sex scenes! This is another way to feel something. Being outside with the policeman in the snow, those gusts of wind, it was so cold but it’s those sensory feelings that are needed for an actor to play with. My character talks a lot about death, however, it’s not that she is attracted to death, I think she feels free knowing she’s not scared of it. Theres this great line where I say, “I am not suicidal, I am just not afraid of death.” It’s true and I feel liberated because of it.
LL: It solidifies our characters to be so different physically. The way that we both express ourselves, our reactions to when she cuts her wrists, they are very different. The way that we dance and drink at that bar is so different. Those physical traits are what makes our characters so unique.
CL: I do not remember when, but I know we had to fight for that scene at some point. It was hard in the script to read that sequence and immediately understand what we were trying to say about these characters. We wanted to keep that scene, it was really important in understanding her husband’s point of view. When he’s telling her to stay on the meds it seems intrusive so we wanted to validate his concerns a little bit. While it is great to be free we needed to make the point that her relationship to freedom has sometimes scared those around her. The comedy needed to work here, it could not be a dramatic scene. I love their performances here.
CR: It was not in the script that it would be a sports bar. We decided it would be best to have all these men around them. I asked casting if these men could all be shorter than Karine. I wanted her to be the queen of the bar. There was a lot of masculinity in the bar and masculinity is not just toxic, it can be very sexy. The shots of the swimmers and footballers, you can feel the testosterone. Usually it’s the other way around, cheerleaders and women playing volleyball being sexy. That was fun to do in those scenes.
HTN: Going back to that confession. The way you confess is so funny to me, just saying casually, “we touched each other a lot, it was fun” Laurence then looks at your son and your husband and then you deliver this great little soliloquy about how monogamy was invented for men not women. Chloe and Catherine what was important to you here and for Laurence and Karine, what were you guys going for?
CL: She is trying to change her perspective on things. That speech Laurence’s character really needed to hear. It’s something we never question or face head on, that it can be difficult to maintain a relationship. She sees now that this situation is not her fault and maybe it is monogamy that is not the perfect system.
CR: I love that scene. To have them talk about that while the kid is just a few meters away. She’s literally smiling at her kids saying these things. It’s nice to have a mother character be so transgressive. She needs to feel free to speak. It was a very fun scene.
LL: This is the pivotal moment for violet when she hears this. It sparks all these new thoughts in her head. I loved doing that scene, the crescendo of it. She continuously does not understand until finally she has to explain it so bluntly and it’s like a bomb. For the rest of my character’s journey, it was a bomb in a good way.
HTN: I love this line. “Yeah we get obsessed with doing the right thing. Doing what’s right, making good choices. “ – Karine. Laurence then says “it’s like there’s no good choice” and Karine says “Even if there was you can’t live your life like there is some reward at the end.” It’s a really poignant moment. For all of you. What were you hoping to achieve here?
CR: With this scene, through Karine and Laurence, I was just looking for sincerity. It’s a big line. Catherine was not sure at one point whether we should include it or not. Sometimes lines like that can feel too obvious. We had to keep it, and the way to keep it was to have it be simple and sincere. I feel like people remember that line and they talk about it. I am happy it is there.
KGH: One of the reasons the movie really resonated for me is, I just turned 40 years old, and I am torn between the idea of having a family and having a career. I keep thinking, how am I going to do this? What do I need to accomplish before? I need to sleep better! I should do more sports! It goes on and on. That is basically what my character is saying in the movie. We keep trying to accomplish goals based on societal norms or our familial standards and it often does not work! There is no recipe. No one is going to give you a medal for doing yoga every morning or having a kid and working. This line and film generally had me really reconnect with myself and what I really want. I can make choices and those choices are for me to feel better!
– Jack Schenker (@YUNGOCUPOTIS)
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