A Man and a Woman (1966)

A widow and a widower find their relationship developing into love, but their past tragedies prove hard to overcome, causing them to proceed with utmost delicacy.

Director:

Claude Lelouch

Writer:

Pierre Uytterhoeven

Stars:

Anouk Aimée, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Pierre Barouh

Won 2 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Anouk Aimée	...	Anne Gauthier
Jean-Louis Trintignant	...	Jean-Louis Duroc (as Jean Louis Trintignant)
Pierre Barouh	...	Pierre Gauthier
Valérie Lagrange	...	Valerie Duroc
Antoine Sire	...	Antoine Duroc (as Antoine)
Souad Amidou	...	Françoise Gauthier (as Souad)
Henri Chemin	...	Jean-Louis' Codriver
Yane Barry	...	Mistress of Jean-Louis
Paul Le Person	...	Garage Man
Simone Paris	...	Head Mistress
Gérard Sire	...	Announcer

Storyline

A man and a woman meet by accident on a Sunday evening at their children's boarding school. Slowly the widower and widow reveal themselves to each other, with each revelation hidden by a misperception. They become closer and closer, until she reveals that she can't have a lover because her husband's memory is still far too strong. Much of the film is told wordlessly in actions or through hearing each person's thoughts.

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Plot Keywords:

deauville | car chase | paris france | male female relationship | love | 

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Taglines:

See It With Someone You Love!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French English Spanish

Release Date:

12 July 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Man and a Woman

Filming Locations:

Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films 13

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The magazine Jean-Louis Duroc was reading, as his son drove the Ford Mustang, is the October 29, 1965 issue of Time magazine. The picture on the cover was that of Bill Moyers, with the heading of " The Young Man Next To The President".

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Quotes

Jean-Louis Duroc: Some Sundays start well and end badly. It's hard to believe- It's crazy to refuse happiness. If I had to go through this again, What would I do? Is there anything else I could do? To see her for months on end as a pal. What happens? You end up being pals, maybe. She wired, 'I love you.' Admit it boy, you just don't understand women.

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Connections

Referenced in Growing Pains: Jason's Rib (1986)

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Soundtracks

Aujourd'hui c'est toi
Music by Francis Lai
Lyrics by Pierre Barouh
Performed by Nicole Croisille

User Reviews

What the real Art is

A Man and a Woman (1966)**** Simple and brilliant love story about one week in lives of a french widow and a widower is enriched by inventive cinematography and directing (by Lelouch), great performances (Aimee and Trintignant) and amazing score (by Francis Lai). Very unique and subtle script (by Lelouch and Uytterhoeven) was worth an Oscar. This movie also deservedly won Cannes Golden Palm and Foreign Language Oscar. Music score was, however, neglected by Academy but remains memorable today (after 40 years) and is often used in similar (would-be) movies. It also inspired a sequel – A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later - in 1986. also directed by Lelouch. However, it was a major disappointment with lack of any real sense and various unnecessary subplots. Except of stunning opening car race sequence. (I would recommend a sequel only because of this).