''Actrices'' (''Actresses'') is a French
comedy-drama film
Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
directed by
Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, released in 2007. The film was presented in the official selection at the 60th
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
and won a ''Prix Spécial du Jury'' in the
Un Certain Regard
(, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob.
The section presents 20 films w ...
section.
Plot
Marcelline is a chagrined actress, haunted by ''Natalia Petrovna'', the heroine of the
Turgenev
Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev (; rus, links=no, Ива́н Серге́евич Турге́невIn Turgenev's day, his name was written ., p=ɪˈvan sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ tʊrˈɡʲenʲɪf; 9 November 1818 – 3 September 1883 (Old Style dat ...
play ''
A Month in the Country'', that she is rehearsing. Trying to escape her fears she visits the swimming pool. While she is swimming she listens to
Glenn Miller.
At the age of 40 she is unmarried and lives only for her work at the theatre. When she learns she will probably never have children, this heightens her anguish. She tries to communicate with those around her - living or dead: the
Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
, the protecting ghost of her father seated on the family sofa, the mischievous phantom of her lover perched in a tree. She laughs and cries in turn, a nothing perturbs her, a look from her mother, or simply a kiss from the young lead in the play she is acting in.
Cast
*
Valeria Bruni Tedeschi as Marcelline
*
Noémie Lvovsky as Nathalie
*
Louis Garrel
Louis Garrel (born 14 June 1983) is a French actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his starring role in '' The Dreamers'', directed by Bernardo Bertolucci. as Éric
*
Mathieu Amalric
Mathieu Amalric (; born 25 October 1965) is a French actor and filmmaker. He is best known internationally for his roles in the James Bond film '' Quantum of Solace'', in which he played the lead villain, Steven Spielberg's ''Munich'', Wes An ...
as Denis
*
Valeria Golino
Valeria Golino (born 22 October 1965) is an Italian actress and film director. She is best known to English-language audiences for her roles in '' Rain Man'', ''Big Top Pee-wee'' and the two '' Hot Shots!'' films, particularly the olive-in-the-be ...
as Nathalia Petrovna
*
Marisa Borini as The mother
*
Maurice Garrel as The father
*
Simona Marchini
Simona Marchini (born 19 December 1941) is an Italian actress, television and radio presenter, stage director, comedian and art dealer.
Life and career
Born in Rome, the daughter of the businessman Alvaro, Marchini graduated in modern literat ...
as The aunt
*
Bernard Nissille as Jean-Paul
*
Olivier Rabourdin
Olivier Rabourdin (born 3 March 1959) is a French film actor. He has appeared in more than seventy films since 1985. In 2010 he was nominated for a French César Award in the category of Best Supporting Actor (Meilleur acteur dans un second rôle) ...
as Marc
*
Laetitia Spigarelli as Juliett
*
Gilles Cohen as Jean-Luc
*
Marie Rivière as The tailoress
*
Eric Elmosnino as Raymond
*
Robinson Stévenin as Julien
*
Laurent Grévill as Arthur
*
Pascal Bongard as The priest
References
External links
*
2007 films
Films directed by Valeria Bruni Tedeschi
French comedy-drama films
2007 comedy-drama films
2000s French-language films
2000s French films
Films produced by Olivier Delbosc
Films produced by Marc Missonnier
{{2000s-France-film-stub