Therese and Isabelle (1968)

Two young girls experience awakening sexuality in the heated atmosphere of a Swiss girls' boarding school...

Director:

Radley Metzger

Writers:

Violette Leduc (based on the novel by), Jesse Vogel (screenplay)

Stars:

Essy Persson, Anna Gaël, Barbara Laage

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Essy Persson	...	Thérèse
Anna Gaël	...	Isabelle (as Anna Gael)
Barbara Laage	...	Thérèse's mother
Anne Vernon	...	Mademoiselle Le Blanc
Simone Paris	...	The Madame
Maurice Teynac	...	Monsieur Martin
Rémy Longa	...	Pierre
Nathalie Nort	...	Renée
Darcy Pulliam	...	Agnès
Suzanne Marchellier	...	Mademoiselle Germain
Bernadette Stern	...	Françoise
Sege Geeraert
Martine Leclerc	...	Martine
Édith Ploquin
Alexandra Kabes

Storyline

A older woman visits the boarding school of her youth after a 20 year absense. While strolling about the deserted grounds and classrooms she remembers her highly emotional experiences there, and well-executed flashbacks occur to her youth. At 17 she is abandoned by her loving mother because of remarriage and left at a European boarding school, disenchanted and lonely. Immediately she meets Isabell, an older, confident, rebellious girl. The two develop a friendship quickly without much conversation or bonding, but have the always temporary chemistry necessary for their friendship to progress into a sexual relationship. The sex scenes are slow and sensual -as they should be for two young girls experiencing lesbianism for the first time. Despite their undying love confessions to each other, Theresa wakes up one morning to find Isabell has left the school, her room and desk replaced with another student. She never see's Isabell again.

---

Plot Keywords:

character names as title | forenames as title | three word title | exploitation | character names in title | 

---

Taglines:

The strangest love story ever told.

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance

---

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filmed MOS (without recorded dialogue) but with the cast enunciating in English; then prepared in separate English and French language versions for release.

---

Quotes

[last lines]
Therese: I never saw Isabelle again.

---

Connections

Referenced in American Grindhouse (2010)

User Reviews

Totally Worth It...Even If You Aren't a Lesbian

I must admit, when I read the description of the genre on Netflix as "Steamy Romance" I was a little bit skeptical. "Steamy"? In a movie from 1968?? I was prepared for disappointment. And when I realized it was shot entirely in black & white, I knew my erotic hopes were dashed.

Boy, was I wrong! Not only does this film have all of the elements of a steamy romance -- the discovery of first love, fear of the secret being found out, a sudden unexpected end -- but at times this movie was downright erotic. You will soon forget that it is shot in black & white. The cinematography deserves every accolade it has received over the years. And the performances from the two stars (Essy Persson and Anna Gael) are intense and memorable. OK, so they're both in their mid twenties trying to play school girls. It's 1968. Do you really expect teenagers from the '60s to be able to effectively explore a lesbian love story like this? Many adult women were still trying to come to grips with their sexuality back then. Anyone looking for real teens here is expecting too much.

I think this movie was way ahead of its time. The level of eroticism was an unexpected pleasure; yet it still managed to leave a lot to the imagination, opting instead to give us poetic descriptions to add to what we were shown.

I have no doubt lesbians will identify with the characters here. As for you straight guys who love watching lesbians in action: Although it won't be all you expect, I don't think you'll be too, too disappointed.

Details

Country:

Netherlands France West Germany USA

Language:

French English

Release Date:

18 June 1969 (France)

Also Known As:

Thérèse et Isabelle

Filming Locations:

Sans-Souci, Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany

Box Office

Budget:

$250,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amsterdam Film, Berolina-Film GmbH

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1