La lectrice (1988)

A multi-faceted film based on Raymond Jean's novel "La Lectrice". Constance (Miou-Miou) reads the novel aloud in bed to her lover. Inspired by the story of Marie, a woman who advertises her... See full summary »

Director:

Michel Deville

Writers:

Raymond Jean (novel), Michel Deville (adaptation),

Stars:

Miou-Miou, Régis Royer, María Casares

4 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Miou-Miou	...	Constance / Marie
Régis Royer	...	Eric
María Casares	...	General's Widow
Patrick Chesnais	...	Company Director
Pierre Dux	...	Magistrate
Christian Ruché	...	Jean / Philippe
Brigitte Catillon	...	Eric's Mother
Marianne Denicourt	...	Bella
Charlotte Farran	...	Coralie
Clotilde de Bayser	...	Coralie's Mother
Jean-Luc Boutté	...	Police Inspector
Simon Eine	...	Hospital Professor
Maria de Medeiros	...	L'infirmière muette
André Wilms	...	Man in Rue Saint-Landry
Bérangère Bonvoisin	...	Joel's Mother

Storyline

A multi-faceted film based on Raymond Jean's novel "La Lectrice". Constance (Miou-Miou) reads the novel aloud in bed to her lover. Inspired by the story of Marie, a woman who advertises her services as a reader of literature, Constance decides to do the same. Here the film takes on a kaleidoscopic effect as the lives of Constance and Marie become merged, making it hard to distinguish what is real and what is fantasy. This structure is further complicated when the lives of Constance's clients become tangled with the stories she reads. The film is interspersed with readings from well known literary sources as diverse as, amongst others, Baudelaire, Duras, Tolstoy, Lewis Carroll and de Sade's "120 days..."

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Plot Keywords:

reader | reading | male nudity | male frontal nudity | based on novel

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

October 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Reader

Filming Locations:

Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Box Office

Gross:

$699,397 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Eléfilm, AAA Productions, TSF Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

User Reviews

the joys of genuine reading: not for the e-book crowd

Even the most ardent bibliophiles have to set aside their books when the theater lights go down, but this playful French import at least offers some consolation, in a sense attempting to approximate with the written word what Juzo Itami did with noodles and egg yolk in 'Tampopo'. One of the joys of a good book is of course the vicarious thrill of escapism, something Miou-Miou discovers firsthand while reading Raymond Jean's novel (of the same name as the film) and imagining herself as its protagonist: a professional reader who finds her choice of books somehow reflecting the idiosyncrasies of each client. This is clearly a film working on several levels at once, but a refresher course in European literature may be required to fully appreciate it. The visual scheme is offbeat and arresting, bringing the pages of each selected novel to colorful life, but the script is perhaps too infatuated with its own love of language, creating an elegant and infuriating puzzle where the patterns of each separate piece are more attractive than the finished picture.