Intimate Strangers (2004)

A Frenchwoman tells her marital troubles to a man she mistakes for a psychiatrist, and soon they form an unusual relationship.

Director:

Patrice Leconte

Writers:

Jérôme Tonnerre (scenario and dialogue), Jérôme Tonnerre (adaptation)

Stars:

Sandrine Bonnaire, Fabrice Luchini, Michel Duchaussoy

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sandrine Bonnaire	...	Anna
Fabrice Luchini	...	William
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Dr. Monnier
Anne Brochet	...	Jeanne
Gilbert Melki	...	Marc
Laurent Gamelon	...	Luc
Hélène Surgère	...	Mrs. Mulon
Urbain Cancelier	...	Chatel
Isabelle Petit-Jacques	...	Dr. Monnier's Secretary
Véronique Kapoyan	...	Female Guard (as Véronique Kapoian)
Benoît Pétré	...	Messenger
Albert Simono	...	Mr. Michel (as Alberto Simono)
Claude Derepp	...	The Customs Client (as Claude Dereppe)
Aurore Auteuil	...	The Student Nabokov
Ludovic Berthillot	...	The Mover

Storyline

Because she picked the wrong door, Anna ends up confessing her marriage problems to a financial adviser named William Faber. Touched by her distress, somewhat excited as well, Faber does not have the courage to tell her that he is not a psychiatrist. From appointment to appointment, a strange ritual is created between them. William is moved by the young woman and fascinated to hear the secrets that no man ever heard...

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Plot Keywords:

psychiatrist | secret | marriage | motorcycle | sculpture class | 

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Taglines:

She confused him for a therapist and told him her deepest secrets. Now, two people who never should have met are discovering there's nothing more seductive than the truth.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual dialogue

Details

Official Sites:

Paramount Classics

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

3 September 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bliscy nieznajomi

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$1,623,237 (France), 27 February 2004

Opening Weekend USA:

$55,836, 1 August 2004, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$2,106,677, 21 November 2004

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films Alain Sarde, France 3 Cinéma, Zoulou Films

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Remade as Intimate Strangers

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Soundtracks

Sur le Moment
Written by Suna Syal

User Reviews

Intimate Strangers: Sensual, Hitchcock-ian Mystery...

Patrice Leconte has long been one of my favourite directors...his predominate theme is simple...the intimate connection between two lonely strangers; evident in his previous classics....GIRL ON THE BRIDGE (1999) & MAN ON THE TRAIN (2002)...With INTIMATE STRANGERS, his characters meet by mistake...Anna (Bonnaire) is a beautiful, mysterious woman who has suddenly walked through the door of William's (Luchini) office in need of his professional counsel...however, she has mistaken his office for her psychiatrist's & has mistaken William to be a shrink...

INTIMATE STRANGERS is an elegant film...it has the feel & pace of an old noir film of the past where an equally beautiful & mysterious woman walks suddenly into the office of a private eye on some dark, stormy night...Leconte deals with the mind of a woman...revealing her deepest thoughts & desires...teasing us with every appointment between the two strangers...Bonnaire is intense & uninhabited as the distraught Anna & Luchini is the perfect compliment to keep the mode & atmosphere light when it needs to be...

Overall: Gorgeous looking film; camera work is almost excellent, shots over the shoulder seem almost voyeuristic...as if we are eavesdropping or tailing the characters....definitely one of the best Leconte films & one of the best of '04...