Charlotte Gainsbourg Movies
One of the more compelling French actresses of her generation, Charlotte Gainsbourg initially made her screen name parlaying wayward adolescence into an understated art form. Tall, long-necked, and elegantly gawky, Gainsbourg first impressed critics and audiences with her portrayal of the naive but rebellious protagonist of L'Effrontée (1985), earning a César for Most Promising Young Actress.The daughter of French singer/songwriter/occasional actor and director Serge Gainsbourg and English actress Jane Birkin, Gainsbourg was born into substantial celebrity in London on July 22, 1971. Initially keen on being either an artist or a surgeon, she made her film debut playing Catherine Deneuve's daughter in the 1984 Paroles et Musique. That same year, she courted notoriety when she starred alongside her ever-irascible father in his controversial "Lemon Incest" music video, which featured the two cuddling on a bed surrounded by feathers. More salubrious attention came the young actress' way the following year, when she earned a César for her performance in Claude Miller's L'Effrontée.
After another stint acting alongside her father in his poorly received Charlotte Forever (1986), Gainsbourg again collaborated with director Miller for La Petite Voleuse (1988), portraying a sullen teenager experimenting with sex and various illegal pursuits. She reprised her rebellious teen role for Merci La Vie (1991), a black comedy that cast her and Anouk Grinberg as two young women on a rampage against men and just about whomever else crosses their path. Gainsbourg got an opportunity to broaden her range with Jacques Doillon's Amoureuse (1992), an ensemble piece about a group of young women who come together to discuss life and love, and her uncle Andrew Birkin's The Cement Garden (1994), a drama about extreme familial dysfunction that was the actress' first English language outing.
Gainsbourg made her second English film in 1996, starring as the eponymous heroine of Franco Zeffirelli's adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. Although the film, which also starred William Hurt, received very mixed reviews, it did succeed in introducing Gainsbourg to a wider international audience. She further enhanced her good reputation when she won her second César -- this time for Best Supporting Actress -- in 2000 for her work in La Bûche (1999), a comedy that cast her as an ambitious businesswoman who takes up with a mysterious man lodging at her father's house. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Jane B. is London-born actress and recording star Jane Birkin. Agnes V. is Belgian filmmaker and "grandmother of the New Wave" Agnes Varda. Jane B. Par Agnes V is a cinematic recounting of Birkin's career, from her breakthrough appearance as one of the nude models in Blow-Up to her pinnacle as star of such films as La Femme de Ma Vie (1986). It is also the story of Birkin and Varda's close relationship, made stronger by their mutual admiration and their lifelong fascination with feminist themes. Viewers who prefer straightforward, objective documentaries rather than radicalized film techniques, may not appreciate Jane B. par Agnes V. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Birkin, Philippe Léotard, (more)
- 1988
- PG
From time to time a deceased novelist or artist is sufficiently revered that, as a form of homage, his disciples will take one of his unfinished projects and attempt to bring it to completion. The screenplay for La Petite voleuse was written by Claude Miller, Luc Beraud and Anne Miller based on a scenario co-authored by the late French cinema great Francois Truffaut. It brings a respectful, unsentimental, and unflinching eye to bear on the life of Janine Castang (Charlotte Gainsbourg), a 16-year-old girl beset with antisocial drives due in part to an unpleasant home life. After the Second World War, her mother was made an outcast for consorting with the Germans, and she entrusted Janine to the doubtful care of her milquetoast brother and his highly unsympathetic wife. Janine has a vivid fantasy life, and a problem with kleptomania. After she's caught stealing she's forced to go to work as a maid rather than continue in school. Soon afterward, her romantic nature flowers in a number of new relationships which place new obstacles before her. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlotte Gainsbourg, Simon de la Brosse, (more)
- 1987
- R
Veteran French director Agnes Varda's Le Petit Amour is based on a short story by actress/songstress Jane Birkin. Birkin herself plays the main character, a loving but lonely 40-year-old divorcee. Her life is brightened a bit by the presence of a handsome 15-year-old, played by Mathieu Demy. Their romance forms the basis of this "petit" Varda effort, which is also known as Kung Fu Master (now you'll have to see it for yourself!). Shortly after the release of Le Petit Amour, Agnes Varda directed a documentary centering upon Jane Birkin, Jane B par Agnes V. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Birkin, Mathieu Demy, (more)
- 1986
- R
This drama with incestual nuances features singer-songwriter turned director Serge Gainsbourg as Stan, a screenwriter who has seen much better days. He is currently agonizing over his daughter, Charlotte (Charlotte Gainsbourg). Charlotte blames him for the death of her mother in an accident. Stan vents his feelings on anyone who will listen -- a gay friend, a low-life movie producer, a repulsive prostitute, and two young women his daughter's age. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Serge Gainsbourg, Charlotte Gainsbourg, (more)
- 1985
In this argumentative, fractious drama about a warped sense of male-female love, Bruno (Jacques Bonnafe) who is clearly not playing with a full deck, devises a means to test the love of his girlfriend Isabelle (Ann Gisel Glass). Since Isabelle had been in love with Alain (Xavier Deluc) in the past, Bruno invites Alain to a surprise birthday party for her at a hotel -- what better way to judge her feelings than to get them together? Alain arrives with his current girlfriend Lio (Fanny Bastien) to find that the "party" is only a foursome. Soon after the two couples start the evening off, their polite exteriors deteriorate as they bicker on, and on, and on. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann-Gisele Glass, Fanny Bastien, (more)
The dreams and naivete of Charlotte, a young, working-class girl (Charlotte Gainsbourg in an award-winning performance) clash with reality as she meets the young pianist she admires (Clothilde Baudon), and a younger pest she would like to shed (Julie Glenn). Charlotte is surrounded by a drab life in her rundown neighborhood and is saddled with a crass brother and a father whose attention is elsewhere. Life picks up a little color when a new friend comes into the picture, a pianist from the other side of the tracks who is going to give a recital in town. The more sophisticated pianist jokes that maybe Charlotte should be her manager, and that sets off a series of misunderstandings that lead to some pretty wild moments. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bernadette Lafont, (more)
- 1984
This routine French melodrama features Catherine Deneuve) as Margaux, an unhappily married recording-company executive with two children at home who starts an affair with Jeremy (Christophe Lambert), one of the singers she promotes through her company. Margaux's husband is away in New York working on a book, yet she still tries to hide her affair from her children, unwilling to let anyone know what is happening -- especially her husband. Jeremy's old singing partner Michel (Richard Anconina) misses his friend, who now spends most of his time with Margaux, and on one occasion Michel is forced to go to an important audition by himself. When the audition turns out to be a big success, Jeremy has to make up his mind about both his conflicting partnerships: one with Margaux and the other with Michel. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Catherine Deneuve, Christopher Lambert, (more)
