Emmanuelle Laborit Movies
- 2001
A woman learns to care for others when she's forced to help people on the wrong side of the law in this drama. Marie-Line (Muriel Robin) is a single woman in her mid-forties who oversees the cleaning crew at a large office building. On the job, Marie-Line is all business, with no patience for laziness and no tolerance for employees who do less than a perfect job. But Marie-Line's bosses are in the midst of a money crunch and they've cut back on her budget, so when several of her employees quit, she has to find new cleaners willing to work for a lower wage. Marie-Line soon finds new workers willing to work hard for low pay, but there's a catch -- most of them are illegal aliens, smuggled into France from Africa, Albania, or the Middle East, and when police begin asking questions about Marie-Line's new cleaners, she has to scramble to cover for them. Marie-Line also discovers that many of her new hires have children they can't afford to leave with sitters or day care, so she finds herself helping to look after the kids, which brings out a compassionate side of her that she has spent much of life trying to keep hidden. Muriel Robin's performance in Marie-Line earned her a Best Actress nomination at the 2001 Cesar Awards (the French Academy Awards). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Muriel Robin, Fejria Deliba, (more)
- 2001
A nun must overcome a severe hearing impairment in order to find her place in the outside world in this well-regarded Swiss drama. Antonia (Emmanuelle Laborit) is a deaf woman in her late twenties who lost her parents as a child. With nowhere to go, Antonia was taken in by Verena (Renate Becker), the mother superior at a Swiss convent where many of the sisters have taken a vow of silence. When she was young, Antonia felt comfortable in these surroundings and came to join the order, but as she's grown older she begins to wonder if she made the right choice. Antonia begins doing volunteer work at a homeless shelter, where she meets Mikas (Lars Otterstetd), a petty thief and onetime carnival performer who is also deaf. Mikas boldly expresses his desire for Antonia, and to her surprise, she finds herself responding to his advances; the two become romantically involved, but their affair comes to an abrupt end when Mikas dies in an altercation with the police. Shattered by the experience, Antonia decides to sever her ties with Verena and the convent and travels to the United States, where she applies to study at Gallaudet University, an internationally renowned college for the deaf and hearing impaired where she can remake her life among others like herself. Emmanuelle Laborit, who plays Antonia, is in fact deaf and studied at Gallaudet University; in 1994, she published a book about her experiences as a student called The Cry of the Gull. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emmanuelle Laborit, Lars Otterstetd, (more)
- 1997
In the midst of WW I, a doctor and a lawyer team up to turn a ramshackle old mountain chateau into a sanatorium/health spa that caters to the afflicted from most every stratum of European society, most of whom show up with false hope in their hearts and plenty of equally false identities. Even the proprietors have a few deceptions, chief among them is the part of the resort where they provide shelter for dying and horribly maimed soldiers. Still the atmosphere of this high-class convalescent home is that of great gentility that thinly disguises the seaminess of the guests' secret activities. Though much of the film is a quirky comedy, tragedy comes creeping in when people begin dying of unnatural causes, and not even the pure mountain air can save the owners and the residents. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fabrice Luchini, André Dussollier, (more)
- 1997
Based on an acclaimed, popular historical novel by Dacia Maraini, this 18th-century set costumer follows the adventures of a deaf-mute noblewoman who strives to escape her dark past and the social conventions that force her to remain married to a man she detests. The story begins when the already speechless title duchess is 12 years old. In hopes of shocking her back into speaking, her grandfather takes her to a hanging. The causes of Marianna's affliction are revealed slowly as the story progresses, but the whole truth is not revealed until the end. Though she is much loved by her family, they still force her to marry her ancient uncle when she is only 13. Her wedding night is horrific as is the birth of her first daughter. Her husband is desperate for an heir so she is forced to endure his unwanted attentions until she is finally able to bear him a son. Despite her oppressive life, Marianna is able to find freedom in subtle ways. She also has time to save a peasant girl from a terrible situation. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Emmanuelle Laborit, Roberto Herlitzka, (more)
