Stealing Beauty (1996)

After her mother commits suicide, a young woman travels to Italy in search of love, truth and a deeper connection with herself.

Director:

Bernardo Bertolucci

Writers:

Bernardo Bertolucci (story), Susan Minot

Stars:

Jeremy Irons, Liv Tyler, Carlo Cecchi

3 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Carlo Cecchi	...	Carlo Lisca
Sinéad Cusack	...	Diana (as Sinead Cusack)
Joseph Fiennes	...	Christopher
Jason Flemyng	...	Gregory
Anna Maria Gherardi	...	Chiarella Donati
Jeremy Irons	...	Alex
Jean Marais	...	M. Guillaume
Donal McCann	...	Ian
D.W. Moffett	...	Richard
Ignazio Oliva	...	Osvaldo Donati
Stefania Sandrelli	...	Noemi
Francesco Siciliano	...	Michele Lisca
Mary Jo Sorgani	...	Maria
Leonardo Treviglio	...	Lieutenant
Liv Tyler	...	Lucy Harmon

Storyline

Lucy, an American teenager arriving in the lush Tuscan countryside to visit her mother's friends, Diana and her husband, Irish artist Ian residing there. She visited there four years earlier and exchanged a kiss with a handsome boy, Niccoló with whom she hopes to become reacquainted. Her mother, poet Sara has committed suicide since then, and she also hopes to discover the identity of her father, whom her mother hinted was a resident of the villa. Once she arrives, she meets a variety of eccentric visitors, including a dying gay playwright Alex, M. Guillaume, an old deranged New York art gallery owner, Diana's daughter from a previous marriage, jewelry designer Miranda, her boyfriend, an entertainment lawyer Richard, Noemi, a column writer and several others. Lucy has decided to lose her virginity and becomes an object of intense interest to the men of the household, but the suitor she finally selects is not the initial object of her affection. Stealing Beauty boasted an intriguing ...

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Plot Keywords:

female nudity | skinny dipping | sex scene | hand under skirt | white panties | 

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Taglines:

The most beautiful place to be is in love.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexuality, nudity, some drug use and language

Details

Country:

Italy France UK

Language:

English French German Spanish Italian

Release Date:

14 June 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dancing by Myself

Filming Locations:

Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$103,028, 16 June 1996, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$4,573,330, 15 September 1996

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fiction, France 2 Cinéma, Jeremy Thomas Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The subplot of Lucy setting out to uncover the identity of her biological father mirrors Liv Tyler's own life. In an interview, the actress stated that she didn't know Aerosmith frontrunner Steven Tyler was her real father throughout her childhood and had been raised byTodd Rundgren whom she had thought was her father and when she was 8, she found out that the Aerosmith frontrunner was her father and had figured out that he was her father.

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Goofs

When Lucy meets Richard at the pool, she puts her hand on the pool's edge twice.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Lucy: What are you doing?

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Crazy Credits

During the opening credits, there is a montage of Lucy (Liv Tyler) being recorded on a video camera during her travel to Italy by an unknown man.

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Connections

Featured in Indie Sex: Teens (2007)

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Soundtracks

Alice
Performed by Cocteau Twins
Written by Cocteau Twins
Courtesy of Capitol Records, Inc.

User Reviews

Blew Me away

This film blew me away. The hurt, love and pain expressed in this movie through the most simple forms of cinematography are amazing. A classical film of life and death, of love and pain. One of Liv Lylers best acting jobs. Again I agree that this is a film that maybe Americans won't really understand. Its very European in the way the individual characters interact. A must see for anyone who demands detail in a film. Its not just a love or romance film. Its about life in its purest form, about peoples imperfections and their desires. It brings out human nature as its over all theme. Once again, it blew me away. I haven't seen a film like this before.