The Double Life of Veronique (1991)
- Starring:
- Irène Jacob, Wladyslaw Kowalski, (more)
- Director(s):
- Krzysztof Kieslowski
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R
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The Double Life of Véronique is the story of two young women who are -- in some mysterious and irresolvable way -- the same woman leading two different yet interconnected lives. Those familiar with Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski's later "Three Colors" trilogy of Blue, White, and Red will recognize his fascination with accidental happenings and chance encounters, as well as Irène Jacob (from Red) whose performance as both Veronika and Veronique won the 1991 Cannes Film Festival award for best actress. Veronika and Véronique are born on the same day in 1966, one in Poland, the other in France. They grow up separately, unaware of each other's existence, but with the vague and rarely expressed feeling that they are "not alone." The story begins in Poland, where Veronika (like Véronique) is a talented vocalist and music student who wins a prestigious singing competition and is given the chance to perform with a local symphony. On the night of the concert, while singing a duet onstage, Veronika loses consciousness and dies. Véronique is emotionally wounded by the loss of her double and decides to end her singing career. The film charts the effect of Veronika's death on Véronique and on her dispassionate and unsatisfying relationships with men, especially her father. She is led to puppeteer and children's book author Alexandre Fabbri (Philippe Volter), whose puppet shows and stories are dramatic variants on her own mysterious problem. While looking through photographs of Véronique's trip to Poland, Fabbri discovers a picture of Veronika walking through a student demonstration in Kracow. He shows the picture to Véronique, who intuits the significance of Veronika's perfect likeness to herself. ~ Anthony Reed, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 97 mins
Complete Cast:
- Irène Jacob - Weronika/Veronique
- Aleksander Bardini - Orchestra Conductor
- Sandrine Dumas - Catherine
- Philippe Volter - Alexandre Fabbri
- Jerzy Gudejko - Antek
- Louis Ducreux - Professor
- Jacek Wojcicki - Barbara Szalapa
- Gilles Gaston-Dreyfus - Jean-Pierre
- Jacques Potin - Man with Grey Coat
- Jan Sterninski - Lawyer
- Chantal Neuwirth - Receptionist
- Youssef Hamid - Railway Man
- Thierry de Carbonniere - Professor
- Wladyslaw Kowalski - Veronika's Father
- Guillaume de Tonquedec - Serge
- Claude Duneton - Veronique's Father
- Halina Gryglaszewska - Aunt
- Kalina Jedrusik - Gaudy Woman
- Dominika Szady - Beata Malczewska
- Lorraine Evanoff - Claude
- Bernadetta Kus - Pauline Monier
- Boguslawa Schubert - Woman with Hat
- Nausicaa Rampony - Nicole
- Wanda Kruszewska - Lucyna Zabawa
- Alain Frerot - Mailman
- Philippe Campos - Nicole Pinaud
- Director(s):
- Krzysztof Kieslowski
- Writer(s):
- Krzysztof Piesiewicz, Krzysztof Kieslowski
- Producer(s):
- Leonardo de la Fuente, Bernard P. Guiremand
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- R(Nudity, Not For Children, Adult Situations, Sexual Situations)
- Closed Captioning:
- Check All Versions
- Subtitles:
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- 1991 - The Double Life of Veronique - Cannes Film Festival - Best Actress
- 1991 - The Double Life of Veronique - Golden Duck - Best Polish Film
- 1990 - The Double Life of Veronique - Los Angeles Film Critics Association - Best Music Score
- 1990 - The Double Life of Veronique - National Society of Film Critics - Best Picture
