Catherine et Cie (1975)

Director:

Michel Boisrond

Writers:

Catherine Breillat (writer)
Léo L. Fuchs (writer)

Release Date:

29 October 1975 (France)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Mary Poppins she ain't!

Plot:

An enterprising young prostitute decides to become her own corporation.

Plot Keywords:

Prostitute | Erotica | Paris France | Female Nudity | Character Name In Title

Cast

Jane Birkin	...	Catherine
Patrick Dewaere	...	François
Jean-Pierre Aumont	...	Marquis de Puisargue
Vittorio Caprioli	...	Moretti
Jean-Claude Brialy	...	Guillaume
Nathalie Courval	...	Mauve
Mehdi El Glaoui	...	Thomas
Henri Garcin	...	Robert Grandin
Jacques Rosny	...	Jean-Pierre
Jean Barney	...	Bernard
Dora Doll	...	Mère de Catherine
Hélène Duc
Robert Favart
Alexandra Delli Colli	...	Osmane (as Alexandra Gorski)
Jacques Legras

Also Known As:

Catherine & Co. (USA)
Un letto in società (Italy)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:MA (TV rating) | Finland:K-18 | USA:R

Company:

Produzione Intercontinentale Cinematografica (PIC)

Dumb sex comedy redeemed by a shagelicious Jane Birkin

A naive but promiscuous British woman (Jane Birkin) comes to Paris to work as a cook, and basically has to resort to prostitution just to have a bed to sleep in. But she eventually manages to turn the tables on all the French lotharios she meets when she "incorporates" her, um, services.

This would be an irredeemably stupid sex comedy without the presence of Jane Birkin. She is so sexy and so frequently naked or clad in impossibly short mini-skirts that, I have to confess, my critical judgment was completely scrambled (not that I have that much to begin with). She also proves a pretty decent comedienne, playing a character who makes Emanuelle Arsan or Erica Jong seem like Queen Victoria. Of course, one poor guy (who later becomes her "accountant") she will only sleep with in the most literal sense. Another guy, however, (Jean-Pierre Aumont) comes home to find her occupying his bed and they have a LONG sex scene while they hilariously discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various sexual positions. In another incredible scene she is frugging away at a disco in her glittering micro-mini ensemble when she locks eyes with a guy across the room. Minutes later, and seemingly without a word of dialogue, she has shimmied out of her dress and is bare-ass naked in his bed. (No wonder he mistakes her for a pro and , much to her surprise, presents her with 500 francs afterwards!)

Birkin might be most famous today for being the mother of French actress Charlotte Gainsbourg (whose father was the late French pop impresario Serg Gainsbourg). Both mother and daughter are stunning beauties who have never been shy about shedding their clothes. Both are also respected actresses today. But while Gainsbourg has always appeared in pretty high-class roles since her memorable debut in Claude Miller's "The Little Thief", Birkin debuted in small but memorable role in Michaelangelo Antonioni's "Blowup" (where she supposedly had the first ever full-frontal nude scene in a legitimate film), but toiled for some years in a lot of crap like this before making it big in star-studded British Agatha Christie adaptations (i.e. "Death on the Nile", "Evil Under the Sun") and highbrow French art films (i.e. "La Belle Noisseuse). One thing is for sure though--a dumbass sex comedy with the "shagelicious" presence of Birkin is ALWAYS better than one without it.