The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)
- Starring:
- Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons, (more)
- Director(s):
- Karel Reisz
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R
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John Fowles' original novel The French Lieutenant's Woman was distinguished by a literary technique that involved telling a story of Victorian sexual and social oppression within the bounds of a 1970s viewpoint. How does one convey this time-frame dichotomy on film? The decision made by director Karel Reisz and Harold Pinter was to frame Fowles' basic plot within a "modern" context of their own making. While we watch as Sarah (Meryl Streep), a 19th-century Englishwoman ruined by an affair with a French lieutenant, enters into another disastrous relationship with principled young Charles (Jeremy Irons), we are constantly made aware that what we're seeing is only a film. This is done by surrounding the story with a modern narrative, focusing on a movie production company which is on location--filming The French Lieutenant's Woman. Meryl Streep doubles in the role of Sara and the American actress who plays her, while Jeremy Irons essays the dual role of Charles and the handsome Briton playing Charles. Likewise, everyone else in the cast is seen as "themselves" and as their French Lieutenant's Woman characters. Not surprisingly, the "real" Streep and Irons enter into an affair which closely parallels their characters' relationship. The commercial TV version of French Lieutenant's Woman eliminates 30 minutes' worth of "extraneous" scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 124 mins
Complete Cast:
- Meryl Streep - Sarah Woodruff/Anna
- Hilton McRae - Sam
- Charlotte Mitchell - Mrs. Tranter
- Jean Faulds - Cook
- Colin Jeavons - Vicar
- Patience Collier - Mrs. Poulteney
- Leo McKern - Dr. Grogan
- Ben Forster - Boy on Undercliff
- Anthony Langdon - Asylum Keeper
- Richard Griffiths - Sir Tom
- Michael Elwyn - Montague
- Cecily Hobbs - Betty Anne
- David Warner - Murphy
- Alun Armstrong - Grimes
- Richard Hope - 3rd Assistant
- Jeremy Irons - Charles Smithson/Mike
- Emily Morgan - Mary
- Lynsey Baxter - Ernestina
- Peter Vaughan - Mr. Freeman
- Liz Smith - Mrs. Fairley
- John Barrett - Dairyman
- Arabella Weir - Girl on Undercliff
- Catherine Willmer - Dr. Grogan's housekeeper
- Edward Duke - Nathaniel
- Graham Fletcher-Cook - Delivery Boy
- Toni Palmer - Mrs. Endicott
- Doreen Mantle - Lady on Train
- Joanna Joseph - Lizzie
- Penelope Wilton - Sonia
- Gerard Falconetti - Davide
- Director(s):
- Karel Reisz
- Writer(s):
- Harold Pinter
- Producer(s):
- Leon Clore
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R(Strong Sexual Content, Brief Nudity, Not For Children, Adult Language, Profanity, Adult Situations)
- Closed Captioning:
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- Subtitles:
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- 1981 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Sound
- 1981 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Anthony Asquith Award
- 1981 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Actress
- 1981 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Sound
- 1981 - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Sound
- 1981 - Hollywood Foreign Press Association - Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama
- 1981 - Los Angeles Film Critics Association - Best Actress
