The Unknown Woman (2006)

Haunted by a horrible past, a Ukrainian young woman calculatedly insinuates herself into the life of a rich Italian family.

Director:

Giuseppe Tornatore

Writers:

Giuseppe Tornatore (story), Giuseppe Tornatore (screenplay)

Stars:

Kseniya Rappoport, Michele Placido, Claudia Gerini

20 wins & 26 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kseniya Rappoport	...	Irena (as Ksenia Rappoport)
Michele Placido	...	Muffa
Claudia Gerini	...	Valeria Adacher
Piera Degli Esposti	...	Gina
Alessandro Haber	...	Matteo
Clara Dossena	...	Tea Adacher
Ángela Molina	...	Lucrezia (as Angela Molina)
Margherita Buy	...	Avvocato Irena
Pierfrancesco Favino	...	Donato Adacher
Nicola Di Pinto	...	Magistrato
Paolo Elmo	...	Nello
Simona Nobili	...	Poliziotta
Elisa Morucci	...	Cameriera
Giulia Di Quilio	...	Segretaria
Pino Calabrese	...	Magistrato

Storyline

A Ukrainian woman named Irena calculatedly insinuates herself into the lives of a young, affluent Italian family. Stopping at nothing to become the couple's trusted maid and the beloved nanny to their fragile young daughter, Irena risks everything in her quest to uncover the truth about the family. Like an intricately constructed jigsaw puzzle, The Unknown Woman reveals piece by piece the enigma of Irena's past.

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Plot Keywords:

dark past | maid | female in a shower | full frontal nudity | female full frontal nudity | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some disturbing violent content involving rape and torture, graphic nudity, sexuality and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [United States]

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian Ukrainian

Release Date:

20 October 2006 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Unknown Woman

Filming Locations:

Papigno, Terni, Umbria, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

EUR8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,701, 1 June 2008

Gross USA:

$152,114

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$6,881,566

Company Credits

Production Co:

Medusa Film, Manigolda Film, Sky

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film received a small release in Los Angeles in late 2007 in order to qualify for the 80th Annual Academy Awards (it was eligible in all categories, including Best Foreign Language Film). However it didn't get a wide US release until the following year.

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Connections

References Oliver Twist (2005)

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Soundtracks

Giorgia On My Mind
Written by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell
Performed by The Band
Courtesy of EMI Music Italy

User Reviews

The Unknown

Finally an Italian film with an international taste! No married couples going through a difficult period, no stupid pointed remarks to our painful ruling class.

The universe in which "The Unknown" takes place is, first, the shadow world of those sordid, sinister and rude men, who aren't worthy to be called human beings, who bait young girls from the East-European countries with the false promise of a good work in Italy, as waitresses, housemaids, even models. The girls' families pays a lot of money out for their daughters' travel toward the affluence, but, when the girls come to Italy, they soon find out they will never be cover beauties or salaried people: they are forced to prostitute themselves until they reach, with their work, the amount their families paid. Practically, they become slaves, continuously exposed to rapes, strokes, blackmails.

Then, "The Unknown" moves into the comfortable world of a common North Italy town. An incredibly harsh but marvelous film. At the end, I wondered: how many stories like this happen around us and we just aren't conscious.