Madeleine, 92 years old, calls a taxi to take her to the retirement home where she will be living. Charles, a disillusioned driver with a tender heart, agrees to drive by the places that affected Madeleine’s life. Through the streets of Paris, her extraordinary past is revealed. They don’t know it yet, but they will forge a friendship during this drive that will change their lives forever.
Initially, Christian Carion, had the the original script written by Cyril Gély, and read it in one go on a train. By the end of the journey, he was in tears. Faced with the universal question of what will happen to our parents as they age, the story of Madeleine, 92, leaving her home to reside in a care facility struck a chord with him. From the outset, Carion knew the movie was crafted for Line Renaud. Wanting to take her on a journey through space and time, he made a few changes to Cyril’s script and reached out to Dany Boon, whom he had known since Merry Christmas. Notably, Driving Madeleine forms a northern connection, as all three collaborators hail from the same region in the North of France.