Isabelle Huppert Movies
One of the most enduring and respected actresses in French cinema, Isabelle Huppert is known for her versatile portrayals of characters ranging from the innocent to the sultry to the comic. Born March 16, 1955, in Paris, Huppert graduated from the Paris Conservatoire d'Art Dramatique and made her first film, Faustine et le Bel Été, when she was 16. Her career accelerated rapidly, and she soon found work with such acclaimed directors as Bertrand Blier, with whom she made Les Valseuses (1974), a film also notable for making a star out of Gérard Depardieu; Otto Preminger, for whom she appeared in Rosebud (1975); and Claude Chabrol, with whom she would make a series of films, starting with 1978's Violette Nozière, for which she won a Best Female Performance award at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival. Also in 1978, she won a British Academy Award for Best Newcomer for her role in La Dentellière (The Lacemaker).Huppert's career in the 1980s commenced fairly inauspiciously, with a part in the legendary flop Heaven's Gate (1981), but it soon picked up with starring roles in Bertrand Tavernier's Coup de Torchon (1981), Jean-Luc Godard's Passion (1982), and Diane Kurys' celebrated Entre Nous (1983). Throughout the 1980s and '90s, Huppert made an impressive number of films in her native country, collaborating with Claude Chabrol on 1988's Une Affaire de Femmes (Story of Women), the widely acclaimed Madame Bovary (1991), and La Cérémonie (1995), for which she won a 1996 Best Actress César. Since the Heaven's Gate fiasco, Huppert's work in American film has been minimal, a worthwhile exception being her role as a nun-turned-nymphomaniac writer of pornographic fiction in Hal Hartley's Amateur (1994). In her native France, Huppert has become something of an institution, continuing to work prolifically on such films as Benoît Jacquot's L'École de la Chair (1998) and serving as the 24th president of the César Awards in March 1999.
Despite the fact that American audiences remained sadly unaware of Huppert's success overseas, her performances in Jacquot's False Servant and the historical drama Saint-Cyr (both 2000) found her meeting challenging roles head on to captivating effect. The sometimes disturbing films she appeared in may not have been the easiest for audiences to digest, but they certainly cemented her belief that the art of acting is a means of "living out one's insanity," and no matter what the subject matter or quality of the actual film, Huppert remained a consistently compelling screen presence. Huppert's success in Chabrol's Merci Pour le Chocolat (2000) came as no surprise to many given her successful track record with the enduring director, and the following year she would once again come under the international spotlight for her remarkable performance as a sexually repressed and self-destructive piano teacher in director Michael Haneke's confrontational drama The Piano Teacher (2001). Her fearless powerhouse performance shocked audiences worldwide and earned Huppert a Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was soon counterbalanced by director François Ozon's popular international black comedy 8 Women the following year. A campy, freewheeling musical mystery starring some of the biggest female stars in French cinema, the film came as an unexpected but infectious jolt of originality to audiences whose skin had been worn thin by a recent spat of heavy dramas.
Huppert's performance as an opinionated hooker who forms an unexpected bond with her illegitimate daughter in 2002's Ghost River benefited the touching drama well, and the following year, she was back with Haneke for the disturbing The Time of the Wolf. As with many of Haneke's films, The Time of the Wolf sharply divided audiences -- some of whom saw the film as celluloid perfection and others who viewed it as unrelentingly downbeat garbage. In 2003, Huppert would appear under the direction of an American director for the first time since 1994's Amateur with a role in Three Kings director David O. Russell's comedy I Heart Huckabees. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
- 2009
- NR
A veteran call girl and a neurotic psychotherapist discover that they have far more in common than they imagined in this comedy drama from filmmaker Jeanne Labrune. Alice (Isabelle Huppert) is a high-end prostitute who has been in the game for many years but thinks it might be time for her to find a new career. Meanwhile, Xavier (Bouli Lanners) is an analyst who is having a hard time sorting out his own relationship issues, especially since his wife (Valerie Dreville) is demanding a divorce. Xavier isn't happy about the sad state of his sex life, and a friend suggests he turn to a professional and puts him in touch with Alice. After Alice and Xavier bond over their shared interest in antiques, they strike a deal -- he'll give her therapy sessions, as she needs to shore up her confidence and sort out her emotional issues while she gives up prostitution, and in turn she'll give him the sex that he's not getting from his unhappy wife. However, while Alice is cool and matter-of-fact about her trade, Xavier isn't quite as casual about sex, and he's curious about her ability to assume different personalities at the whims of her customers. Sans Queue Ni Tête (aka Special Treatment) was an official selection at the 2010 BFI London Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Bouli Lanners, (more)
In this drama directed and co-written by Claire Denis, Isabelle Huppert plays Maria, a white French expatriate living in an African nation that has fallen into political chaos. Maria owns a coffee plantation, and regards her property as her personal domain; she's not about to give up her land, though her stubborn attitude prevents her from admitting that she's putting those close to her in danger, or even acknowledging the gravity of her situation. Maria has two children with her former husband, André (Christopher Lambert), a young adopted boy and dissatisfied twentysomething Manuel (Nicolas Duvauchelle). André is deeply concerned for the safety of Maria and their sons, and has made plans for her and the boys to flee to Europe, but Maria insists that the military will protect her and the others in the area, a belief that seems to be fueled by arrogance rather than fact. White Material received its North American premiere at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Isaach de Bankolé, (more)
- 2008
Legendary French screen actress Isabelle Huppert headlines this sumptuous, passionate tale, adapted from a novel by belletrist Pascal Quignard (All the Mornings of the World). Huppert stars as Ann, a gifted and brilliant, middle-aged musician whose sense of security falls to pieces when she stumbles onto her husband, Thomas (Xavier Beauvois), kissing another woman. Without hesitation, she abandons him and takes a headlong rush into the arms of a new life. Guided by her musical intuition and the emotional support of a male friend, Georges (Jean-Hugues Anglade), Ann suddenly realizes how necessary it is for her to latch onto a new identity. She thus embarks on a transnational journey that ultimately takes her to the island of Ischia, Italy, and a palatial house called the Villa Amalia that will change her life. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Hugues Anglade, (more)
- 2008
- NR
An entire household is caught in traffic thanks to the opening of a new super-highway in this satiric comedy drama from Swiss filmmaker Ursula Meier. Marthe (Isabelle Huppert) and her husband (Olivier Gourmet) live in a small home in rural France with their three children. The family values their peace and quiet, except for oldest daughter Judith (Adélaïde Leroux), who has a fondness for cranking heavy metal music as she relaxes in her lawn chair. While construction on a highway near the house began years ago, the progress has been so slow that Marthe and her family have all but forgotten about it. But once the road is opened, they're suddenly subjected to a nonstop barrage of noise, exhaust, and all the stress that comes with it, and the relative calm of the household decays into chaos as Marthe is driven to a nervous breakdown. Home was screened as part of the Critics' Week program at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Olivier Gourmet, (more)
Acclaimed actress Isabelle Huppert stars in this downbeat tale of a suicidal mental patient trapped in an endless maze of despair following the death of her only child. Initially raised in an acrid household, later locked into a dicey marriage, and ultimately saddled with a daughter she never wanted, Danielle attempts to take her own life multiple times before doctors are left with no other choice than to lock her away for the sake of her own safety. Not even sympathetic psychiatrist Dr. Neilson (Greta Scacchi) seems able to break through to the stoic patient whose hollow gaze that hints that any hope for salvation has long been lost. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert
- 2007
Director Tonino de Bernardi reworks the tragic myth of Medea into a passionate tale of a nightclub singer abandoned by her husband and forced to care for their two children alone. Irene (Isabelle Huppert) left her homeland in pursuit of Jason, the love of her life. Now Irene is a stranger in a strange land, yet she and her husband Jason live comfortably in a Parisian banlieu with their two children. The couple also owns a nightclub where Irene is the featured entertainer. Though everything seems to be in place for a happy future, Irene suddenly finds herself tumbling into despair after Jason inexplicably abandons his wife and their two young daughters. But Irene has also been caring for a mute girl named Martha who she had brought with her from home, and now the pressure of being a single mother to three children is taking a heavy psychological toll. Consumed by madness yet refusing to lash out violently towards those around her, Irene finds her life forever changed after crossing paths with an exploited Rumanian girl named Marcela. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Tommaso Ragno, (more)
- 2007
Screen legend Isabelle Huppert (La Dentellière, Les Soeurs Brontë) headlines acclaimed director Alessandro Capone's gently-spun yet intransigent psychodrama L'Amour caché (2007). Huppert plays Danielle, a middle-aged woman rebounding from the trauma of an unsuccessful suicide attempt, and wrestling resolutely with the inner demons that propelled her into that tragic emotional state. Greta Scacchi (White Mischief) co-stars as Dr. Nielsen, the psychiatrist assigned to guide Danielle through therapy and recovery. Though the patient initially presents herself as unwilling to vocalize, in time she picks up a pen and attempts to write, letting the words flow out of her, cathartically, onto paper. It becomes apparent to both doctor and subject that the source of Danielle's trauma lies in her dysfunctional, estranged relationship with her daughter, Sophie (Mélanie Laurent) - now a contented, healthy wife and mother with a husband and a small child of her own - and that Danielle herself caused the schism by allowing irrational feelings of jealousy and inadequacy to separate her from Sophie. Danielle soon realizes that if she is to make any progress on emotional and psychological levels, she and Sophie must work through the immense obstacle of anger that divides them. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Greta Scacchi, (more)
The sale of a family home causes some ugly truths to be uncovered in this drama from writer and director Joachim Lafosse. Pascale (Isabelle Huppert) is a middle-aged divorcée living in a restored farmhouse in the countryside with her twin sons, twentysomethings Francois and Thierry. After years of bickering with her ex-husband about the estate, Pascale has decided to sell the farmhouse with an eye toward opening a guest house in a resort community, but the twins are vehemently opposed to the idea. Pascale persuades her boyfriend to talk with Francois and Thierry in hopes of changing their mind, but the meeting does not go well and the twins inadvertently discover a long-held family secret that causes them to turn against Pascale, as well as one another. Also starring Jérémie Rénier and Yannick Renier as the twins, Nue-Propriété received its world premier at the 2006 Venice Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Jérémie Renier, (more)
Claude Chabrol's Comedy of Power stars Isabelle Huppert as a French judge who attempts to bring down the very powerful but corrupt CEO of a large corporation. As she digs deeper into the case, she uncovers criminal activity that stretches into the highest levels of government, and her life is turned upside down by death threats as well as her sudden celebrity. The film follows as her career affects her family. Loosely based on real events, Comedy of Power had its North American debut at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, François Berléand, (more)
A seemingly ideal marriage is thrown into embarrassing turmoil in Patrice Chéreau's period drama, Gabrielle. Based on the short story The Return by Joseph Conrad, the film opens with Jean (Pascal Greggory) extolling the virtues of his pretty wife, Gabrielle (Isabelle Huppert), in voice-over as he makes his way home from work. Jean and his wife, with help from their team of servants, have fostered the illusion of a perfect bourgeois household. Jean is particularly happy with the way Gabrielle presents herself at the couple's frequent dinner gatherings, attended by their "set," whom, as he describes them, "fear emotion and failure more than war." We see glimpses of these occasions in flashback, while Jean explains of his wife, "I'm proud of what she is -- impassive." The secure little world he's fashioned for himself is shattered when he arrives home and finds a note from Gabrielle, explaining that she's leaving him. "It's terrible, and right," the missive states. After a brief explosion of rage, Jean tries to compose himself, but he's thrown into chaos again when Gabrielle unexpectedly returns home. She finds it impossible to speak to Jean. "This letter is not the worst of it?" he asks her. "The worst is my coming back," she explains. The two struggle bitterly to regain the balance in their relationship. Soon, in the interest of appearances, another dinner party is planned. Gabrielle, switches from black-and-white to color and back from scene to scene, and is also notable for its intriguing use of intertitles. It was adapted by Chéreau and his frequent collaborator, Anne-Louise Trividic, and was shown at the 2005 New York Film Festival, presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Pascal Greggory, (more)
An attractive widow finds her attentions turning to her teenage son in a troubling manner in this drama from France. Pierre (Louis Garrel) is a moody 17-year-old who is spending the summer with his parents at their summer home in the Canary Islands. While Pierre isn't especially close to his father (Philippe Duclos), he enjoys a warm relationship with his mother, Hélène (Isabelle Huppert) -- almost too warm, as her affection for him subtly strains the boundaries of typical familial behavior. When Pierre's father dies unexpectedly in an auto accident, his emotional dependence on Hélène grows, while her desire for her son does the same. Though Pierre finds himself attracted to several girls his own age summering on the island, he finds it increasingly difficult to reconcile his curiosity with the growing sexual tension between mother and son. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Louis Garrel, (more)
Five years after achieving commercial and critical success with his film Three Kings, director and screenwriter David O. Russell returns to the more idiosyncratic territory of his earlier work with this intelligent and offbeat comedy. Bernard and Vivian Jaffe (Dustin Hoffman and Lily Tomlin) are a married couple who run an existential detective agency where they sift through the lives of their clients in order to discover the source of their angst. The Jaffes' latest client is Albert Markovski (Jason Schwartzman), an environmental activist who has a very large rock and a great deal on his mind; their study of Albert's problems lead Bernard and Vivian to Brad Stand (Jude Law), a public relations executive with a chain of successful variety stores, Huckabees. While publicly allying himself with Albert's environmental initiatives, behind the scenes Brad is running roughshod over responsible land management with little care for the consequences. When Brad learns he's being watched by the Jaffes, he hopes to co-opt them by hiring them himself; however, the plan has unexpected consequences when their questioning leads Brad's girlfriend, well-scrubbed model Dawn (Naomi Watts), into reassessing her life and relationships. Meanwhile, Albert finds himself joining forces with Tommy (Mark Wahlberg), a firefighter and fellow environmentalist who has been having second thoughts about Bernard and Vivian's ideas and methods after a long-term investigation and has since fallen under the spell of nihilist poet and philosopher Caterine Vauban (Isabelle Huppert). ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jason Schwartzman, Isabelle Huppert, (more)
On the heels of his award-winning, emotionally devastating 2001 drama The Piano Teacher, German filmmaker Michael Haneke weaves this disturbing tale of a family forced into a harrowing confrontation with a group of strangers set against the backdrop of a global apocalypse. In the aftermath of an unseen but catastrophic global disaster, a shaken family slowly makes their way to the presumed safety of a holiday home in the French countryside. Upon arrival, the family discovers their home inhabited by a woman and a horrified man. When a shot rings out, a life is taken, and time seems to stand still. In the aftermath of unspeakable violence, it appears that the only hope for a band of desperate refugees lies in a nearby train station and a locomotive that -- despite their most optimistic hopes and prayers -- may never actually arrive. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Maurice Bénichou, (more)
Sylvia (Isabelle Huppert) is a 40-year-old prostitute who works on the streets in Nice. Her teenage daughter Laurence (Maud Forget), whom she had abandoned years before, visits her apartment unexpectedly while Sylvia is being beaten by two thugs. One of the thugs is killed in the resulting melee, and the two women flee to the French countryside. Sylvia tries to find her ex-husband with whom she had a son, and her daughter tries to connect with her despite Sylvia's reluctance. They meet the mysterious fugitive Joshua (Pascal Greggory) who joins them. Meanwhile, Sylvia confronts her troubled past and tries to make sense of her life. ~ Todd Kristel, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Pascal Greggory, (more)
A gaggle of mothers, wives, daughters, maids, and mistresses gather for a holiday homecoming at their country mansion -- and end up having to solve a murder-mystery -- in this musical-comic homage to studio-era "women's pictures" from acclaimed French director François Ozon. Partly inspired by George Cukor's 1939 classic The Women, 8 Femmes stars Catherine Deneuve as Gaby, a high-society matron just returned to her country house to celebrate Christmas with her husband; mother Mamy (Danielle Darrieux); sister Augustine (Isabelle Huppert); and daughters Suzon (Virginie Ledoyen) and Catharine (Ludivine Sagnier). Not long after they all arrive, however, do they find the man of the house with a knife in his back, whereupon everyone becomes a suspect -- including maids Chanel (Firmine Richard) and Louise (Emmanuelle Béart). The mysterious arrival of Augustine's sister-in-law Pierrette (Fanny Ardant) only complicates matters, as the titular eight women find themselves snowed in by a fierce blizzard, forced to confront the matter of the lifeless husband -- and their long-standing secrets and resentments -- without the aid of the police. Following its immensely successful release in France in early 2002, 8 Women enjoyed much acclaim at the Berlin and Toronto Film Festivals. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi
- Starring:
- Catherine Deneuve, Isabelle Huppert, (more)
- 2002
Avant-garde director Werner Schroeter's Deux (Two) is a willfully disjointed film about twin sisters played by Isabelle Huppert. As newborns, the two girls were separated. The film intercuts snippets from their lives. One of the sisters engages in some homosexual experimentation, while the other has ongoing conversations with a man (Jean-François Stévenin) who apparently resides in an opera house (opera being one of the director's career-long obsessions). Bulle Ogier plays a woman who may or may not be related to the two women played by Huppert. Deux was screened during the Director's Fortnight portion of the Cannes Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Bulle Ogier, (more)
How far is a man willing to go to be with the woman he wants? Erika (Isabelle Huppert) is a veteran piano instructor at a famous music conservatory in Vienna. Erika is highly respected for her remarkable talent and strong discipline, but she's also known to be a harsh taskmistress and does not suffer fools gladly; among her students, Erika's class is considered a highly rewarding challenge, but difficult to weather. Erika seems to get her stern and unforgiving nature from her mother (Annie Girardot), with whom she still lives, and without a husband or a lover, Erika satisfies her strong but frequently perverse sexual appetites through extreme porn videos, voyeurism, and masturbatory practices that sometimes involve pain and self-mutilation. Erika discovers she has attracted the attentions of one of her students, Walter (Benoit Maginel), a gifted and good-looking young man who does not seem at all put off by her icy personality. She refuses to acknowledge Walter's romantic overtures, but when he rises to the defense of a fellow student after a recital, Erika is enraged, and Walter pursues her, finally following her as she storms off to the women's room. Erika abruptly approaches Walter in a rough sexual fashion, but refuses to fully satisfy him until he is willing to allow her to control the relationship. When Walter becomes aware of just how much pain and humiliation is involved in Erika's erotic bill of fare, he refuses to participate, but in time his attraction to her causes him to weaken, and he begins to accede to her sexual demands. La Pianiste was shown in competition at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, where Isabelle Huppert and Benoit Maginel were named Best Actress and Best Actor, and writer/director Michael Haneke received the Jury's Grand Prize. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Annie Girardot, (more)
- 2000
This droll comedy from France was based on a popular stage play by the 18th century author Marivaux. As a lark, an attractive young heiress (Sandrine Kiberlain) disguises herself as a man as she travels with a servant for a weekend getaway to the estate of her close friend the Countess (Isabelle Huppert). En route, the heiress, introducing herself as "The Chevalier," encounters Lelio (Mathieu Amalric), the Countess' fiancée. Talking "man to man," Lelio confides that he isn't really in love with the Countess, but he is eager to get his hands on her dowry. He'd prefer to marry another woman he's met, who has an even greater fortune -- the heiress. However, he has already agreed to pay the Countess a considerable fortune if he breaks off the engagement; he's hoping that someone else will take her off his hands so that he can woo the heiress and come out ahead. The heiress, now aware just how much of a louse Lelio is, agrees as the Chevalier to romance the Countess, knowing that if "he" can win her away from Lelio, he'll be out of an income on both sides. Director Benoit Jacquot filmed La Fausse Suivante in a theater, using vintage costumes and minimal props to help retain the flavor of the stage production. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mathieu Amalric, Pierre Arditi, (more)
A woman begins to wonder if her young son is who she thinks he is in this psychological suspense story. Ariane and Pierre (Isabelle Huppert and Denis Podalydes) are the busy parents of a nine-year-old son, Camille (Nils Hugon). Camille feels neglected by his hard-working mom and dad and often seems to drift into a world of his own, preferring his imaginary friends to other children or his nanny Helene (Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre). One day, Camille startles Ariane by announcing he wants to live with his real mother -- and proceeds to lead her to an apartment across town, where Ariane is introduced to a stranger named Isabella (Jeanne Balibar). Camille seems to know all the nooks and crannies of Isabella's flat, and the latter insists that he is her lost son Paul, who actually drowned two years ago. Unsure of what to do, Ariane decides to play along, going so far as to allow Isabella to stay in the family's home as she tries to resolve Camille's dilemma with the help of her brother Serge (Charles Berling), a psychiatrist. Comedie de L'Innocence is based on a novel by Massimo Bontempelli and was directed by acclaimed Chilean filmmaker Raul Ruiz. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Jeanne Balibar, (more)
Claude Chabrol directed this well-crafted thriller, which recalls the style and themes of his best-known work of the 1960s. Marie-Claire "Mika" Muller (Isabelle Huppert), who has inherited control of a large and successful Swiss chocolate company, remarries well-known musician André Polonski (Jacques Dutronc), to whom she was briefly wed 18 years ago. After their divorce, André married a woman named Lisabeth and they had a son, Guillaume (Rodolphe Pauly), whom André was left to raise alone after Lisabeth's death in an auto accident. One of André's favorite stories is how Guillaume was almost exchanged for another baby at the hospital shortly after he was born; one day André receives a visit from a young woman named Jeanne (Anna Mouglalis), who claims to be the other child. Jeanne and André soon find they have a remarkable amount in common, and that Jeanne bears a striking resemblance to the late Lisabeth. Jeanne is beginning to wonder if there's something no one has ever told her when Mika gives her a thermos of special hot chocolate as a nightcap, which she then spills all over Jeanne. Jeanne's boyfriend, Axel (Mathieu Simonet), facetiously suggests that the cocoa might be poisoned, and out of curiosity, he tests it, finding that it has indeed been laced with a sedative notorious for its use in cases of date rape. Merci Pour le Chocolat is based on a novel by American crime novelist Charlotte Armstrong. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Jacques Dutronc, (more)
- 2000
This historical drama is based on a true story from 17th century France. Madame de Maintenon (Isabelle Huppert) rises from humble beginnings to become a courtesan to the royal court and eventually marries King Louis XIV (Jean-Pierre Kalfon). With the king's indulgence, Maintenon opens a special school for girls, seeking to educate young ladies of distinguished parentage but limited financial means. With the coaching of Maintenon and her staff, the girls learn to speak French with a linguist's precision, in addition to studying philosophy and history. However, when two of Maintenon's charges, Anne (Morgane More) and Lucie (Nina Meurisse), recite material in class that Madame deems inappropriate, it begins a war of wills between the headmistress and her students. The girls begin demanding increasingly greater freedom of both mind and body, as Maintenon turns from espousing beauty and liberty to demanding strict self-denial and enforcing an increasingly narrow set of regulations. Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale composed the film's original score. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, (more)
- 2000
Noted French filmmaker Laurence Ferreira Barbosa directs this loosely-structured triptych about a trio of unconnected people who struggle through the loneliness of their lives. Impetuous 17-year-old Marguerite (Lolita Chammah), who feels cut off from both her family and classmates, passes the time by talking to God. Eventually, she decides to enter a convent. Meanwhile, housewife Claire (Isabelle Hubbert) is frustrated after ten years of childless marriage. While going to visit a fertility expert in Paris, she happens upon an old lover, gets picked up by some guy at a bar and has a bizarre encounter with an America singer (Robert Kramer). Meantime, Jacques (Frederic Pierrot) is divorced, unemployed, and loathed by his daughter. Just as his life looks one long exercise in desperate futility, he meets comely Eva (Juliette Andrea). Suddenly, he transforms himself into a private dick, trying to track down a missing associate. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
- Starring:
- Juliette Andres, Lolita Chammah, (more)
Acclaimed French filmmaker Olivier Assayas follows up on the international success of Fin Août, Début Septembre and Irma Vep with this sweeping adaptation of the sprawling three-volume tome by Jacques Chardonne. Set in three chapters spanning from the beginning of the 1900s to after WWI, the first section takes place in the fictional village of Barbazac, located in the Cognac region. Protestant pastor Jean Barnery (Charles Berling) learns of his wife Nathalie's (Isabelle Huppert) infidelity from the village grapevine and sends his daughter away. At the same time, 20-year-old Pauline (Emmanuelle Beart) returns to the village after the death of her father. Pauline and Jean are almost immediately attracted to each other when they first meet at a ball. Soon Jean installs Nathalie and their daughter in an apartment, files for divorce, and resigns as minister. The second chapter opens with Pauline visiting Jean, who is bedridden in a Parisian hotel from tuberculosis. Upon his recovery, they marry and live for a spell in Switzerland, until Jean's family entreat him to return to Limoges and take over the floundering family porcelain business. The final chapter opens with bombs of WWI: Jean is sent to the front, while Pauline works as a nurse. When the war finally draws to a close, Jean struggles to keep the business afloat. He raises the ire of his workers and stockholders alike by freezing wages and slashing dividends, but his fastidious attention to detail soon makes his company the finest producer of porcelain in Europe. Yet as the economic climate of the continent slowly worsens, so does his business -- and his health. This film was first screened at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi
- Starring:
- Emmanuelle Béart, Charles Berling, (more)
- 1999
- NR
An older man and a younger woman find love, with his time in jail the unlikely catalyst, in this witty drama from France. Gregoire (Fabrice Luchini) is a formerly prominent French industrialist whose financial misdealings resulted in a term behind bars, which was especially embarrassing for his brother Louis (Vincent Lindon), a talk show host specializing in hard-hitting investigative interviews. When Gregoire is released from prison, he returns home to the apartment he shared with his wife Agnes (Isabelle Huppert) and their children. But everyone keeps telling Gregoire that he doesn't seem the same; he seems confused, he has a hard time making himself understood, and he freezes up during a television interview conducted after his release. A puzzled Gregoire stops by the beauty parlor where his wife gets her hair done and, to his surprise, he discovers someone he can talk to: Stephanie (Vahina Giocante), one of the hair stylists. Stephanie's boyfriend was in the same jail as Gregoire, and was released the same day, so they have some common conversational ground; Stephanie finds that she likes talking with Gregoire, and in time she finds herself falling for him. Pas de Scandale was shown in competition at the 1999 Venice Film Festival and also at the 1999 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Fabrice Luchini, Isabelle Huppert, (more)
Rating Systems
Blockbuster
BLOCKBUSTER name, design and related marks are trademarks of Blockbuster L.L.C.
2013 Blockbuster L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Portions of Content Provided by Rovi Corporation. 2013 Rovi Corporation.