Woman Under Influence (2015)

"L'emprise" is the story of a drama, adapted from the moving book-witness "Acquitted", by Alexandra Lange. The story of a mother of four children, which is found in March 2012 in the dock ... See full summary »

Director:

Claude-Michel Rome

Writers:

Claude-Michel Rome, Alexandra Lange (novel)

Stars:

Odile Vuillemin, Fred Testot, Marc Lavoine

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Odile Vuillemin	...	Alexandra Lange
Fred Testot	...	Marcello Guillemin
Marc Lavoine	...	Le procureur Luc Frémiot
Sam Karmann	...	Robert Lange
Lolita Chammah	...	Brigitte
Micky Sébastian	...	La juge Schneider (as Micky Sebastian)
Raphaëlle Lubansu	...	Avocate 1 (as Raphaëlle Bruneau)
Laura Sepul	...	Avocate 2
Erico Salamone	...	Rudy
Fabienne Mainguet	...	Johanne
Tania Garbarski	...	Commandant de police
Annick Johnson	...	Sylvie
Rosalia Cuevas	...	Assistante sociale
Claudio Dos Santos	...	Médecin psy
Ingrid Heiderscheidt	...	Médecin légiste

Storyline

"L'emprise" is the story of a drama, adapted from the moving book-witness "Acquitted", by Alexandra Lange. The story of a mother of four children, which is found in March 2012 in the dock of the foundations of Douai for the murder of her husband. How does a woman manage to kill the father of her children with a knife? During the three days of the trial, panting narrative takes us into the daily life of Alexandra, a mother that the society has failed to protect, neither she nor her children from the control of a monster she has loved. Through this incident that made headlines and upset the public, an event movie that raises the question of the balance of justice. Will she be heard?

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Plot Keywords:

man hits woman | domestic violence | courtroom | violence against women | based on true story | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

On its initial French broadcast in January 2015, the film gathered 8 and a half million viewers (or 33% of the audience), becoming the most watched program of the evening.

User Reviews

L'Enfer

When it was screened on French TV ,the movie found a huge audience .

It was not the first time the harsh subject of beaten wives had been tackled ,but it was never treated in such a realistic (and thus often unbearable way).

Alexandra is a nice girl ,but a very naive one:it seems that she marries Marcello to challenge her father who warns her against this violent man who was once married with a woman who says the same :' get away from him!"

She lived with him for 14 years!14 years of daytime nighttime sufferings ,black and blue,her arm in a sling,limping ...nothing is spared the audience;even the children are battered .

Marcello is a complex character:he looks nice and gentle,and we're told he was himself beaten by his father when he was a boy;every time her unfortunate wife leaves him,he makes her come back home by promising he will be "different" .

Alex who gave up her studies even supports him several times,particularly before her dad and her brother;she hides her bruised legs ;she does not want her dream (her nightmare?) to end.

The movie is treated as a trial with long flashbacks depicting Alex's ordeal;she killed her husband in self-defense: he was threatening her children;the final plea of the prosecutor vindicates the defendant;he puts the society on trial: no one came to Alex's rescue:the only help she got was from her dad (who tried to cheat the police) and from her best friend (who,unexpectedly coming to visit her ,discovered her husband prostituted her ).Actually,Marcello was a victim too ,of a childhood who made him a pathologically jealous man;he could probably have been cured ,but they looked the other way.

At the end of this MTV work,statistics about beaten wives appear:they are numerous and many of them don't dare to speak.

Details

Country:

France Belgium

Language:

French

Release Date:

13 January 2015 (Belgium)

Also Known As:

Angeklagt - Gewalt in der Ehe

Filming Locations:

Brussels, Brussels-Capital, Belgium

Company Credits

Production Co:

Léonis, Scope Pictures, Radio Télévision Belge Francophone (RTBF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Color:

Color