Directed by Luis Buñuel
Written by Joseph Kessel, Luis Buñuel, and Jean-Claude Carriere
1967/France
Robert and Raymond Hakim/Paris Film Productions/Five Film
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental
One of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
[box] Madame Anais: You look a bit nervous. Relax. You’ll be out at 5:00. Don’t worry. You have someone waiting for you? A boyfriend? A husband? Oh, don’t think I’m prying. Kiss me.[/box]
Odd that one of Buñuel’s most mainstream films is also one of his most sexually explicit.
Severine Serizy (Catherine Deneuve) leads an apparently idyllic life with adoring husband Pierre. But she just cannot warm up to him in bed. She was molested as a child and now all her sexual fantasies involve masochism and humiliation. One day, Severine hears about an acquaintance who is now working in a brothel. The friend does it for money. Severine looks into it not for money but for sexual gratification. The Madame calls her “Belle de jour” since she must depart for home no later than 5 pm.
We see both Severine’s real life trysts and her fantasies. Pierre appears in many of the latter meting out punishment and calling her names. I will not spoil the deliciously ambiguous ending. With Michel Piccoli as a friend who discovers Severine’s secret.
This certainly qualifies as a must-see in my book. Love the black humor and all the acting.
Just put in a request at the library for Criterion Collection disk!
Contains a nice scholarly film commentary as well!
It is also a beautifully shot movie. All the images are aesthetically sublime even though they delve into very dark areas, which I suppose fits Severine’s character.
I need to ask you a favor, Bea. Do you have a recommendation off-list for 1969? I think I will be adding True Grit, but I have trouble finding a second movie I would want to see.
The Sorrow and the Pity is a staggering achievement in Holocoust documentary if you are up for that kind of thing. I LOVE The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie with a knockout performance by Maggie Smith. My problem with this exercise is that as the years go on there are more and more films I haven’t seen but want to. Here’s my list: https://www.imdb.com/list/ls057194307/?sort=user_rating,desc&st_dt=&mode=detail&page=1