The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)

Regisseur:

Karel Reisz

Drehbuchautoren:

John Fowles (novel)
Harold Pinter (screenplay)

Premierendatum:

August 1981 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Romanze

Werbezeile:

She was lost from the moment she saw him.

Plot:

A film is being made of a story, set in 19th century England, about Charles, a biologist who's engaged to be married...

Plot Keywords:

Tragedy | Atmospheric | Film In Film | Actress | Behind The Scenes

Filmpreise:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 12 nominations

Nutzerkommentare:

A multi-chambered Nautilus shell fossillized in stone.

Besetzung

Meryl Streep	...	Sarah / Anna
Jeremy Irons	...	Charles Henry Smithson / Mike
Hilton McRae	...	Sam
Emily Morgan	...	Mary
Charlotte Mitchell	...	Mrs. Tranter
Lynsey Baxter	...	Ernestina
Jean Faulds	...	Cook
Peter Vaughan	...	Mr. Freeman
Colin Jeavons	...	Vicar
Liz Smith	...	Mrs. Fairley
Patience Collier	...	Mrs. Poulteney
John Barrett	...	Dairyman
Leo McKern	...	Dr. Grogan
Arabella Weir	...	Girl on undercliff
Ben Forster	...	Boy on undercliff

Alternativ:

Frau des französischen Leutnants, Die (Bundesrepublik Deutschland) [de]
Geliebte des französischen Leutnants, Die (Bundesrepublik Deutschland) [de]

Länge:

124 Min

Produktionsland:

UK

Sprache:

Englisch

Farbe:

Farbe

Seitenverhältnis:

1.85 : 1

Tonverfahren:

Mono

Altersfreigabe:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Singapore:M18 | Iceland:12 | Argentina:16 | Finland:S | Norway:16 | Sweden:11 | UK:12 (video re-rating) (2001) | UK:15 (video rating) (1986) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:R | West Germany:12

Drehorte:

Borough Market, Borough, London, England, UK

Firma:

Juniper Films

Pannen:

Abfolgefehler: Early in the film when Charles takes a horse-drawn carriage to visit Ernestine the horse changes between shots (confirmed by the number of "stocking" feet it has).

Dialogzitate:

Sarah: I have set myself beyond the pale. I am nothing. I am hardly human any more.

Bezüge zu anderen Titeln:

Verweis/Anspielung/Erwähnung in Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) (TV)

A multi-chambered Nautilus shell fossillized in stone.

This movie opens with a scene of an archaeologist chipping at a multi-chambered Nautilus shell fossillized in stone. The image is apropos, as the story itself opens from chamber to ever larger chamber as it weaves two seemingly disparate stories with a clever ending.

Jeremy Irons and Meryl Streep are impressive as the leads in two different time lines. In one, Streep is a woman of poor reputation who ensnares a gentleman (Irons) in the black hole of her own guilt and loss. In the other, they are the romantically involved actors making a movie about a woman of poor reputation who ensnares a gentleman. And if that sounds a little too clever, it nonetheless has more creativity and insight than typical plot-twist moving, including the most contrived and overrated movie of all time, Memento (not good enough to be called bad).

There is a scene, in which Streep and Irons are rehearsing a scene from the movie, and, according to the story, it just isn't working. Then, all at once, Streep gets a look on her face, and we are transported into the past time line with a single glance from the greatest working actress and second only to Katherine Hepburn as the greatest actress of all time.

The cinematography, costumes and set designs are legendary, and come from the same team that gave us The Count of Monte Christo, which featured Guy Pearce, who was in the above-mentioned Memento (it still stinks, but how's that for six degrees?.

It is a sublime movie experience to watch the delicately chambered story open up, and there are scenes that are so memorable, like Streep on the misty pier, that you would swear this movie comes from the Golden Age of cinema, not the go-go eighties. The movies is emotionally draining, and Streep gives a typically high concept performance. Irons lacks something, but it's not clear what, but in the end it helps support the story by making him appear flawed enough to have been trapped in the intricate web of The French Lieutenant's Woman.