Irène Jacob Movies
An actress whose classic beauty and thoughtful, almost melancholic style of acting have established her as a cinematic representative of European sophistication, Irène Jacob is one of the preeminent French actresses of her generation. First becoming known through her association with Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski, who cast her as his heroine in both La Double Vie de Véronique and Trois Couleurs: Rouge, Jacob has gone on to work with a number of well-known directors on both sides of the Atlantic.Born in Paris on July 15, 1966, Jacob moved to Geneva with her family when she was three years old. The daughter of a psychologist mother and physicist father, she made her stage debut in Switzerland at the age of 11. She went on to study drama at the Geneva Conservatoire and the prestigious Rue Blanche (the French national drama academy) in Paris and also trained for a time in London. It was while she was working in the theatre that Jacob was spotted by director Louis Malle, who cast her in his Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) -- her first screen role. In 1991, after making a few more French films, Jacob shot to stardom as the lead of Kieslowksi's La Double Vie de Véronique (The Double Life of Véronique). Cast in a dual role as the Polish Veronika and the French Véronique, two women who lead different but indelibly interconnected lives, Jacob drew raves for her performance and won the Cannes Festival's Best Actress Award.
Although she was subsequently flooded with offers to star in a number of American films -- including Indecent Proposal -- Jacob largely focused her talents on small French films, again earning international plaudits in 1994 as the protagonist of Kieslowski's Trois Couleurs: Rouge. Much of her work since then has been for a variety of European directors, including Oliver Parker (for Othello, 1995, which required her, as Desdemona, to read all of her lines in English), Wim Wenders and Michelangelo Antonioni (for Par-Dela Les Nuages, 1995), and Hugh Hudson] (for My Life So Far, 1999). Jacob has appeared in the occasional American film, most notably George Hickenlooper's The Big Brass Ring (1999), a political drama that cast her as a journalist on the prowl for campaign scandal. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- 1995
This European drama is adapted from Simone de Beauvioir's novel of the same name. It is set in post WW II France and tells the story of renowned theatrical actress, Regina, a temperamental diva who feels a great hole in her life until she goes on a provincial tour and meets an enigmatic stranger who is too busy looking inward to notice the world around him. Regina becomes obsessed with this man, and learns that he is an amnesiac. She follows him, and eventually they hesitantly begin an affair. Much of the story centers around their resulting conversations about love, life and death. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1987
Gaspard Manesse plays Julien, an 11-year-old Catholic boarding-school resident during the Nazi occupation of France. He is witness to the courage of his instructors, who defy the German's anti-Semitic policies and quietly enroll Jewish children into the school under assumed names. Manesse befriends Jean (Raphael Fejto), one of these "instant Catholics." The refugee children are betrayed by a hostile ex-employee of the school, forcing Julien once more to be a bystander to history as Jean and the teachers are arrested. For this return to the French film industry after several years in the US, Louis Malle purged himself of his own bitter memories of life under the thumbs of the Nazis. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gaspard Manesse, Raphaël Fejtö, (more)
A conflicted hitman recently who has reconnected with his childhood soul mate finds his quest for redemption becoming increasingly complicated when the girl steals an important briefcase in director Ra'up McGee's stark crime drama. Jean-Pierre is looking to get out of the life of crime when he begins to rekindle his romance with the girl who captured his heart as a child and never let go. Though the love shared between the pair continues to burn brighter than ever despite their many years apart, the sudden disappearance of both the girl and a mysterious briefcase soon forces the reluctant criminal back into the underworld as he is forced to walk the fine line between protecting the woman he longs for and falling back into a life of crime. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurent Lucas, Irène Jacob, (more)
Gerard Depardieu, Vincent Perez, and Jason Isaacs star in director Jean Beaudin's historical account of the battle waged between England and France in hopes of gaining a geopolitical foothold in Canada. When a fur-trapper (David La Haye) and a young widow (Noemie Godin-Vigneau) find themselves inexorably immersed a violent clash of nations, the heartbreak that follows will prove an intimate glimpse into the horrifying effects of war on all of humanity. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Noemie Godin Vigneau, David La Haye, (more)
- 1995
The many ways in which men are fascinated, compelled, and confused by their attraction to women are explored in this four part drama. As a filmmaker (John Malkovich) tries to sort out his plans for his next film, he considers several stories about women and the men who love them. Silvano (Kim Rossi Stuart) meets Carmen (Ines Sastre) and immediately asks her for a date, but despite his attraction, he can't follow through on his feelings for her. The director spies a woman on the streets (Sophie Marceau) and follows her obsessively, but when he finally meets her, he's disappointed, despite their mutual physical attraction. Roberto (Peter Weller) and his wife Patricia (Fanny Ardant) have to deal with their anger about each other's infidelities, as well as their problems with their lovers, Olga (Chiara Caselli) and Carlo (Jean Reno). And Niccolo (Vincent Perez) falls in love at first sight with a young woman (Irene Jacob), unaware that she is studying to become a nun. Par-Dela Les Nuages was Michelangelo Antonioni's first film after a massive stroke derailed his directorial career in 1985; Wim Wenders served as his collaborator on the project. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Malkovich, Kim Rossi Stuart, (more)
- 1998
French-born, UCLA-trained screenwriter Jean-Yves Pitoun made his directorial debut with this French comedy in which self-taught cook Lorenzo, aka Loren (Jason Lee) is discharged from the U.S. Navy after hitting a superior who accused him of serving "sissy food" to the Admiral's guests. Back in Brooklyn, Loren works at his Italian-Irish family's pizza parlor and then heads for France to study with his idol, chef Louis Boyer (Eddy Mitchell). After the death of his wife, Boyer raised his daughter Gabrielle (Irene Jacob), now a successful restaurant architect engaged to physician Vincent (Thibault de Montalembert). Gabrielle and Loren compare recipes and finally choose romance from their menu, while Boyer begins to cave in from the stress of tax problems, restaurant critics, and police seeking illegal foreign workers. Jason Lee learned French in order to do the French dialogue version. In the English-language version, actors speak French but switch to English when Lee is onscreen. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddy Mitchell, Irène Jacob, (more)
- 2007
French filmmaker Paolo Franchi's sophomore feature follows a psychologically damaged youth who makes the grim decision to kill his parents. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruno Todeschini, Elio Germano, (more)
Comic and actor Mike Binder wrote, directed, and stars in this romantic comedy. Ben Greene (Binder) is an American comedy writer who moves to London when he's hired to work on a British television series called Tedford Gate. Tedford Gate stars Carly Matthews-Portland (Mariel Hemingway), a once-popular American actress who has found new popularity working in Europe; her husband Allen (Colin Firth), a stereotypically stiff-upper-lipped Englishman, is the producer of the show. As Ben adjusts to life in London, Carly decides to play matchmaker and fixes him up with Fiona Delgrazia (Irene Jacob), a lovely makeup artist from France who works on the show. Ben is quite taken with Fiona, and she with him, but Carly finds herself increasingly intrigued by Ben, while Allen secretly carries a torch for Fiona. Everyone has to take a long look at their increasingly complicated romantic commitments when Fiona takes a job in Italy and Allen wonders if he should follow her; Ben, meanwhile, has written a play and has found a British producer willing to stage it, but when he offers the female lead to Carly, he soon comes to the conclusion he's made a mistake. Londinium also features Stephen Fry, Jack Dee, and Christopher Lawford. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mariel Hemingway, Mike Binder, (more)
- 1995
Sullen teenage orphan Johnny Miles (Josh Albee) is wrongfully accused of stealing from his foster parents. Running away from home, Johnny forms a bond with another youthful "runaway"--this one a leopard who has escaped from a nearby wild-animal compound. Both fugitives are sheltered by a harsh but lovable kennel owner, Angela Lakey (Dorothy McGuire), who senses that neither boy nor leopard are as bad as they're cracked up to be. Assuming the responsibility of caring for the animal, Johnny risks being captured by the authorities--and while his punishment will be relatively benign, the leopard might well be destroyed. Adapted from a novel by Victor Canning, The Runaways premiered April 1, 1975, on ABC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marie Trintignant, Irène Jacob, (more)
European locations (UK, France, Netherlands) highlight this romantic thriller set in the art world. In New York, top forger Harry Donovan (Jason Patric) is hired by British art dealers to fake a $500,000 Rembrandt, despite pressure from his ill father (Rod Steiger) to use his talent on originals rather than fakes. Harry plans to re-create a Rembrandt lost 350 years earlier when it was shipped from Rotterdam to San Sebastian, Spain. Off to research in Paris, Harry meets art student Marieke (Irene Jacob), uses her to acquire necessary scrapings from a real Rembrandt, sleeps with her in a hotel on the Seine, and then heads for an Amsterdam attic where he fabricates the "masterpiece." When he delivers the painting, he finds his clients won't pay until they are sure they've tricked the London experts. On the scene is Marieke, revealed as no student at all but a respected Rembrandt authority. When she rejects the painting as phony, the situation turns tense, guns go off, and Harry retreats -- with Marieke his hostage. At midpoint, this film features a sequence that reveals the specific details involved in forgery, including canvas aging, precise paints, and other deceptions. For a related film, see Orson Welles' "film essay," F for Fake (1973) with a segment on famed forger Elmyr de Hory. Shown at the 1997 London Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Patric, Irène Jacob, (more)
- 2000
Former Cahiers du Cinema editor Serge Le Peron writes and directs this screwball crime comedy chock full of ironic film references. The film opens with student radical-turned-magistrate Francois Marcorelle (Jean-Pierre Leaud) stumbling into an art house movie theater mid-film. The rather comely woman next to him first begins to caress Marcorelle's leg, then she drops over dead. Later in the film, Marcorelle and his wife Claudie (Dominique Reymond) and their children are supposed to go on a family vacation. Unfortunately, Marcolle is snowed under by a case and is forced to stay behind. A lonely dining excursion in a Turkish restaurant leads to Marcolle driving a beautiful Polish waitress Agneska (Irene Jacob) back to her apartment. After an enjoyable round of adultery, he is attacked by Agneska's father, and the altercation leads to Marcolle inadvertently braining the old man. Agneska claims that she knows people who can dispose of bodies quietly and asks him to leave. Though no body ever turns up and Marcolle tells no one of his encounter -- save his best friend George (Phillippe Khorsand) -- an ambitious lawyer sets out to make a name for himself by accusing the magistrate. This film was screened at the 2000 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Pierre Léaud, Irène Jacob, (more)
- 1993
To say that the renowned Impressionist artist, Vincent Van Gogh (1853-90) had a dysfunctional family is likely to do a disservice to ordinary dysfunctional families everywhere. In this unusual drama, the family (and one friend) of the troubled artist gather together to participate in the customary ceremonies that are performed when a close relative, in this case, Vincent, dies. While Vincent's brother Theo (Jean-Pierre Lorit) and his three sisters are genuinely grief-stricken, his mother (Maria Meriko) seems to be a truly stony character, and her cold contempt and disregard for her sensitive son appears to be just as great in death as it was in life. Fans of Vincent's art will be particularly appalled by the woman's attitude to her son's vocation, and more so by at her actions. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Irène Jacob, Jean-Pierre Lorit, (more)
- 1994
The tales of Alphonse Daudet, the 19th-century author, are depicted in this French film. The film begins as Daudet begins writing the tales. Included is the story of a man's visit to his friend's grandparents, a fantasy about a dying baby king, and a priest's trip to hell to visit the devil. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Pierre Lorit, Louis Lalanne, (more)
- 2002
Directed by Rémi Waterhouse, Mille Millièmes is centered around an eccentric ensemble of apartment residents. Kindness is noticeably absent among their quarters, as demonstrated by a dating pair of neighbors (Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Valérie Stroh) whose request to have their apartments connected was flatly denied. To make matters worse, beggars gathering at a charity event are cruelly tormented by various tenants during the Christmas season. Last but not least is the Portuguese concierge (Luis Rego) whose services are in danger of being replaced by a more cost-effective alternative, and a widow whose recent loss earns her no sympathy from the rent-demanding landlords. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Chesnais, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, (more)
Director Hugh Hudson, who made his directorial debut with the award-winning Chariots Of Fire, returns to the theme of British life in the 1920s in the bittersweet family drama My Life So Far. Gamma Macintosh (Rosemary Harris) is the matriarch of a family that inhabits Harewood House, a castle in the Scottish Highlands. Besides Gamma, the adult heads of the household are her daughter, Moira (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) and Moira's husband Edward Pettigrew (Colin Firth), a mildly eccentric inventor who tinkers with experimental automobiles and airplanes. Moira and Edward have two children, son Fraser (Robbie Norman) and daughter Elspeth (Kelly Macdonald). One day Moira's brother Morris (Malcolm McDowell) stops by with his fiancée, a French woman named Heloise (Irene Jacob), whose beauty and sophistication turns Edward's head and stirs new emotions in young Fraser. Filmed in 1997, My Life So Far remained in the editing room until 1999, when it was shown in a special benefit screening at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Colin Firth, Rosemary Harris, (more)
Actor Oliver Parker made his directorial debut with this adaptation of the tragic play by William Shakespeare that abridges the original text by half and ups the quotient of sex and violence. Laurence Fishburne stars as the Moorish general Othello, who returns a hero after crushing an invasion attempt by the Turkish army near Cyprus. Pledged to marry the lovely Desdemona (Irene Jacob), Othello ignores the advice of his intended's father, who tells him that she may have a deceptive nature. Othello's aide Iago (Kenneth Branagh), jealous over the elevation of his rival, Cassio (Nathaniel Parker, the director's real-life brother) to lieutenant, begins scheming to make Othello believe that Desdemona and Cassio are carrying on an affair. On the slimmest of evidence, Iago manages to manipulate Othello's suspicious, distrustful nature. Played previously in black face on film by actors Orson Welles and Laurence Olivier, Parker's production of Othello (1995) was the first major cinematic production to cast an African-American in the title role. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laurence Fishburne, Irène Jacob, (more)
- 1994
Oleg (Oleg Basilashvili) is in for a really strange time, that much is clear. Of course, just the fact of his desire to visit a gypsy fortuneteller in the first place is an indication of that. He's well past middle age, in his 50s, and is an established, well-known writer. When the fortuneteller told him the same thing (you will have an unusual time), he didn't really believe her. However, when he runs into a 25-year old man in his apartment claiming the same parentage, profession, name and birthday - as well as having a scar over his eye identical to the one older Oleg has, it seems like the prediction has already come true - but it is just beginning. Oleg the younger (Andrei Sokolov) says he's leaving for Israel in the morning, but between then and now, he's at Oleg the older's disposal. For some reason, the presence of this near-doppelganger lends the older man courage and recklessness unlike anything he ever had before, and as he sets things right and gets revenge for previous slights, strange adventures abound. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Oleg Basilashvili, Irène Jacob, (more)
- 1994
The concluding chapter in filmmaker Krzysztof Kieslowski's "Three Colors" trilogy, Red stars the luminous Irène Jacob as Valentine, a young student and fashion model who befriends a bitter former judge (Jean-Louis Trintignant, his character a proxy for Kieslowski himself). Their accidental meeting is just one of the many chance encounters woven through the narrative fabric of this feature, the most accomplished effort in Kieslowski's highly ambitious series. Like its predecessors, Red corresponds to a color of the French flag, as well as the color's symbolic attributes. The subject here is fraternity, and indeed, its central characters are all closely connected, their destinies locked on a collision course. The film's final scene even ties up the trilogy by bringing together the protagonists of the other features. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Irène Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant, (more)
Finnish director Ilkka Jarvilaturi directs an international cast in this deadpan post-Cold War spy farce. Jaded CIA veteran Harry (Bill Pullman) and young SVR agent Natasha (Irene Jacob) are on-again off-again lovers who have little to do in Helsinki except spy on one another, until a courier (Bruno Kirby) shows up with a porno tape bearing top-secret US satellite codes. Natasha wants the tape to get her psychotic boss (Udo Kier) off her back, while Harry needs it to placate his Boy Scout colleague fresh from spy school. History is Made at Night was screened at the 1999 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bill Pullman, Irène Jacob, (more)
An unproduced screenplay written by the late Orson Welles (penned in collaboration with actress Oja Kodar, Welles' significant other in his later years) forms the basis of this drama of political gamesmanship and blackmail. Blake Pellarin (William Hurt) is running for governor of Missouri in a close race going into its final week when a figure from his past reappears. Kim Mennaker (Nigel Hawthorne) was Pellarin's one-time mentor and father figure (after Blake's dad died in the Korean war) who left the United States when public disclosure of his homosexuality ended his political career. This visit from an old friend soon proves less then welcome; when Pellarin was a teenager, he participated in a photo session organized by Mennaker in which he was snapped in sexually compromising positions with both a woman and a man. These photos could put a stake through the heart of Pellarin's life in politics, and Mennaker soon makes clear this is hardly the only dirt he has on Blake. Mennaker also has a ready audience for his stories -- Cela Brandini (Irene Jacob), a European reporter looking for scandal, even though she's having an affair with Pellarin. When Pellarin's wife (Miranda Richardson) and bodyguard (Ewan Stewart) get wind of Blake's indiscretions, his candidacy becomes a disaster waiting to happen. Director George Hickenlooper adapted Welles and Kodar's screenplay with critic F.X. Feeney; among his previous credits, Hickenlooper directed the short film Some Folks Call It A Sling Blade, a short film later expanded by Billy Bob Thornton into his award-winning feature Sling Blade. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Hurt, Nigel Hawthorne, (more)
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
- Starring:
- Irène Jacob, Wladyslaw Kowalski, (more)
