Henry & June (1990)

In 1931 Paris, Anais Nin meets Henry Miller and his wife June. Intrigued by them both, she begins expanding her sexual horizons with her husband Hugo as well as with Henry and others. June ... See full summary »

Director:

Philip Kaufman

Writers:

Anaïs Nin (book), Philip Kaufman (screenplay)

Stars:

Fred Ward, Uma Thurman, Maria de Medeiros

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fred Ward	...	Henry Miller
Uma Thurman	...	June Miller
Maria de Medeiros	...	Anaïs Nin
Richard E. Grant	...	Hugo Guiler
Kevin Spacey	...	Richard Osborn
Jean-Philippe Écoffey	...	Eduardo Sanchez (as Jean-Philippe Ecoffey)
Bruce Myers	...	Jack
Juan Luis Buñuel	...	Publisher / Editor (as Jean-Luis Bunuel)
Féodor Atkine	...	Spanish Dance Instructor (as Feodor Atkine)
Sylvie Huguel	...	Emilia
Artus de Penguern	...	Brassaï
Pierre Étaix	...	Henry's Friend No. 1
Pierre Edernac	...	Henry's Friend No. 2 - Magician
Gaëtan Bloom	...	Henry's Friend No. 3 - Magician (as Gaetan Bloom)
Alexandre De Gall	...	Henry's Friend No. 4 - Clown

Storyline

In 1931 Paris, Anais Nin meets Henry Miller and his wife June. Intrigued by them both, she begins expanding her sexual horizons with her husband Hugo as well as with Henry and others. June shuttles between Paris and New York trying to find acting jobs while Henry works on his first major work, "Tropic of Cancer," a pseudo-biography of June. Anais and Hugo help finance the book, but June is displeased with Henry's portrayal of her, and Anais and Henry have many arguments about their styles of writing on a backdrop of a Bohemian lifestyle in Paris.

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Plot Keywords:

adultery | unfaithfulness | unfaithful wife | cheating wife | sex in bed | 

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Taglines:

A True Adventure More Erotic Than Any Fantasy

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

NC-17

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 October 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Henry y June

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Box Office

Gross:

$11,567,449 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walrus & Associates

Technical Specs

Runtime:

136 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film that Henry Miller and Anaïs Nin go to see is Un Chien Andalou (1929), a film by Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel. Bunuel's son, Juan Luis Buñuel, plays the editor-publisher during the film's opening scene.

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Quotes

Hugo Guiler: Pussywillow!

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Connections

References Unter den Dächern von Paris (1930)

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Soundtracks

Gnossienne No. 3
Written by Erik Satie
Performed by Paul Crossley

User Reviews

an erotic masterpiece.

this film is just flat out exotic in every sense. the period details and characterizations are perfect and the controversial erotic material well integrated into plot and pacing of the film.

the basic plot involves Maria DeMedeiros' character's affair with famous author Henry Miller (Fred Ward) and her attraction to his wife June (a smoldering performance by Uma Thurman.)

all of the actors and actresses involved do splendid work but it is the beautiful Uma Thurman who steals this film. she's only in the film about 25 minutes but those scenes radiate an eroticism that has been unmatched by any film since. she is simply gorgeous in this role and any person doubting her acting ability due to her poor script choices recently should check out her performance in this film.

the much talked-about erotic elements and explicit sex scenes that caused the MPAA to create the now useless NC-17 rating, are actually well integrated into the film and actually work to create better understandings of the 3 principle characters through their sexual behaviors and practices. the film isn't all sex like some people think, but when the erotic elements rear their head, the intensity and focus of these scenes throw people off kilter.

overall this is a fantastic film that drags just a little bit near the beginning and end, but is perfectly acted and stunningly filmed.

a great date film or for people who love truly great cinema.

rating:9.5