Secret Things (2002)
"Choses secrètes" (original title)

Two young women find themselves struggling to survive in Paris, street-wise Nathalie, a stripper, and naïve Sandrine, a barmaid. Together, they discover that sex can be used to their ... See full summary »

Director:

Jean-Claude Brisseau

Writer:

Jean-Claude Brisseau

Stars:

Coralie Revel, Sabrina Seyvecou, Roger Miremont

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Coralie Revel	...	Nathalie
Sabrina Seyvecou	...	Sandrine
Roger Miremont	...	Delacroix (as Roger Mirmont)
Fabrice Deville	...	Christophe
Blandine Bury	...	Charlotte
Olivier Soler	...	Cadene
Viviane Théophildès	...	Mme. Mercier
Dorothée Picard	...	Delacroix's Mother
Pierre Gabaston	...	Bar Patron
María Luisa García	...	Sandrine's Mother (as Lisa Hérédia)
Arnaud Goujon	...	Personnel Manager
Liès Kidji	...	The Young Thief
Patricia Candido Trinca	...	Office Employee
Lydia Chopart	...	Office Employee
Michaël Couvreur	...	Office Employee

Storyline

Two young women find themselves struggling to survive in Paris, street-wise Nathalie, a stripper, and naïve Sandrine, a barmaid. Together, they discover that sex can be used to their advantage, and pleasure. Both find positions in the office of a large bank, where bored, under-stimulated, prey are easy pickings. After making their way though several layers of executives at the bank, with destructive, and lucrative, results, they approach Christophe, scion to the bank director. What they don't know is that Christophe is a manipulative voyeur, whose last two lovers set themselves on fire when he rejected them. A connoisseur of high-class orgies, Christophe is only interested in new talent to satisfy the appetites of all whom he controls. In Christophe, the girls have found an opponent who knows all their wiles, and will challenge their simple under-class friendship with levels of jealousy and ecstasy that they have never experienced before. Will they survive?

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Plot Keywords:

stripper | jealousy | friendship | sex | office | 

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Taglines:

The delectably twisted fable centers on two penniless but shapely young women who set out to better their social station by manipulating men.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

16 October 2002 (France)

Also Known As:

Secret Things

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$2,526 (USA) (30 January 2004)

Gross:

$104,533 (USA) (9 July 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Centre National de la Cinématographie (CNC), La Sorcière Rouge, Les Aventuriers de l'Image

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chosen by "Les Cahiers du cinéma" (France) as one of the 10 best pictures of 2002 (#01, with "Ten")

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Goofs

The end of the movie is supposed to take place after Nathalie is released from prison, several years after the main plot takes place. Yet the movies advertised on the advertisement pillar in the background (See Spot Run, Town & Country) were released in France around the same weeks as the movies referenced in the main plot's time frame (Sleepwalker etc.).

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Quotes

Sandrine: [narrating as we watch Nathalie and her walk through the streets of Paris, eating and drinking at a cafe, while wearing only heels and long coats] It felt funny being naked under our coats in the unsuspecting crowd. Funny, but really pleasant. So we kept it up. I had begun to dare. It gave me a sense of superiority over people I'd pass on the street.

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Connections

Referenced in Brows Held High: Exterminating Angels (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Music for the funeral of Queen Mary"
Written by Henry Purcell
Performed by Monteverdi Choir & Orchestra

User Reviews

Fun

Do you like well made movies with good acting and cinematography? Do you like trashy exploitation? If you answered yes to both of these questions then this is the movie for you. Some people are frustrated that someone would dare bring a story that belongs in a lurid paperback to screen with the former qualities, calling it cheap erotica with art-house pretensions. This is not true. "Secret Things" never overplays its hand and never asks to be taken as anything but what it is. It does not achieve things that a film like "Last Tango in Paris" does, but it doesn't try to (a good thing, given that it lacks Marlon Brando...). Instead, it tells a lurid story of manipulation and social climbing that is both quiet and operatic, sexy and repulsive. There's naked bodies present and food for thought if one is interested. A very well-made movie.