Diary of a Chambermaid (2015 film)
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''Diary of a Chambermaid'' (french: Journal d'une femme de chambre) is a 2015 French drama film directed by Benoît Jacquot, and written by Jacquot and Hélène Zimmer. It is an adaptation of
Octave Mirbeau Octave Mirbeau (16 February 1848 – 16 February 1917) was a French novelist, art critic, travel writer, pamphleteer, journalist and playwright, who achieved celebrity in Europe and great success among the public, whilst still appealing to the ...
's 1900 novel of the same name and stars
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as wel ...
as Célestine, a young and ambitious woman who works as a chambermaid for a wealthy couple in France during the early twentieth century. Mirbeau's original novel was adapted into films multiple times before, notably Jean Renoir's 1946 film and
Luis Buñuel Luis Buñuel Portolés (; 22 February 1900 – 29 July 1983) was a Spanish-Mexican filmmaker who worked in France, Mexico, and Spain. He has been widely considered by many film critics, historians, and directors to be one of the greatest and ...
's
1964 film The year 1964 in film involved some significant events, including three highly successful musical films, '' Mary Poppins,'' ''My Fair Lady,'' and ''The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.'' Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1964 released films by box o ...
. It was screened in the main competition section of the
65th Berlin International Film Festival The 65th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 5 to 15 February 2015, with American film director Darren Aronofsky as the President of the Jury. German film director Wim Wenders was presented with the Honorary Golden Bear. The ...
and was released on 1 April 2015, by Mars Distribution.


Synopsis

In
Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
at the end of the 19th century, a beautiful and ambitious young chambermaid named Célestine (
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as wel ...
) enters the service of her new employers, the Lanlaire family, which consists of a bitter wife and her perverted husband. Monsieur Lanlaire has a reputation for molesting and impregnating his chambermaids, while Madame Lanlaire is known for her domineering attitude over her servants and often fires her chambermaids. She also meets the other servants: Marianne, the overweight and homely cook and the mysterious, older Joseph (
Vincent Lindon Vincent Lindon (born 15 July 1959) is a French actor and filmmaker. For his role in the film '' The Measure of a Man'' (2015), Lindon won Best Actor at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, Best Actor at the 41st César Awards and the IFFI Best Actor A ...
), the groom, who shares a mutual attraction with Célestine. Throughout the film, Célestine reflects on her past positions, such as to a middle-aged woman with an elderly husband who was humiliated at a train customs stop after being forced to open a box revealing her
dildo A dildo is a sex toy, often explicitly phallic in appearance, intended for sexual penetration or other sexual activity during masturbation or with sex partners. Dildos can be made from a number of materials and shaped like an erect human p ...
. Another significant post was her satisfying employment with the sickly young Georges and his kindly grandmother. Georges became infatuated with Célestine as she took care of him. After resisting his advances at first, Célestine had sex with him, only for him to succumb to his illness and die during the act, horrifying her. Numb from the experience, she left the position. In the Lanlaire household, Célestine chafes under the demanding and often unreasonable Madame Lanlaire, who frequently derides Célestine for any delay or error and refuses to let her attend the funeral of her mother. Monsieur Lanlaire quickly sets his sights on Célestine, who rebuffs his advances while secretly plotting to manipulate him. The neighbor, Captain Mauger (
Patrick d'Assumçao Patrick d'Assumçao (born 1 June 1959) is a French actor. Theatre Filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:d'Assumcao, Patrick 1959 births 21st-century French male actors French male film actors French male stage actor ...
), who has apparently bequeathed his estate to the servant, Rose, after his wife left him for sleeping with Rose, is also interested in her. Célestine also plots to use Capt Mauger for her own ambitions, but Rose becomes jealous after Capt Mauger kills his obedient pet ferret named Kleber after a comment Célestine makes about the pet. Célestine finds respite in gossip at the house of the village abortionist and in commiserating with cook Marianne. In one conversation with Marianne, she learns that Marianne was attracted to one of her old masters, but was kicked out after becoming pregnant by him and was forced to kill her baby; later, she reveals that she is having sex with Monsieur Lanlaire regularly and she must get an abortion done. One night, after talking with Marianne, Célestine hears agonized screams coming from the forest, which unsettle her. The next day, she visits Joseph and learns that he is a rabid
anti-Semite Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...
and propagates anti-Dreyfus propaganda on behalf of local priests. He dreams of owning a business where he can provide a rendezvous for militant right-wing nationalists and acknowledges that he needs a woman like Célestine to make his plan a success. Later, while gossiping with the other women, Célestine learns that a local prepubescent peasant girl was violently raped, disemboweled and murdered, explaining the screams Célestine had heard at night. Célestine suspects that Joseph is the murderer, as he could be placed at the scene of the crime, but this only makes her more fascinated with him. Rose dies and Capt Mauger admits to Célestine that Rose had disappointed him after getting a servant of her own and failed to keep up the chores she had when she was a servant. He had hoped to die before her, as he had secretly made a second will nullifying the first, ensuring that Rose would inherit nothing. Capt Mauger offers for Célestine to work for him in the same work and sexual arrangement than Rose had with him, but Célestine only promises to think about it, satisfied with her manipulation of him. Ultimately, she professes her attraction to Joseph and begs to join him. After aggressive sexual intercourse with her, he has Célestine assist him in the theft of the Lanlaire's silverware that would fund his plan, a theft which is blamed on professional thieves. Upon discovering the burglary, Madame Lanlaire wonders aloud why their dogs did not bark at the burglars, so Joseph shoots both the dogs dead. Police start the probe into the burglary. The police ask Lanlaires whether they suspected anyone from the household, especially Joseph, but they give him a clean sheet saying that he had been with them for 15 years and he is very devoted and trustworthy. The police have no clues even after several weeks of investigation. The case is closed unsolved. Joseph quits his position later and Célestine bides her time waiting for him, befriending Madame Lanlaire to get in her good graces before telling her that she is engaged to be married and must soon quit. One night, she sees Joseph's signal through her window and joins him, ruminating that she has been out-manipulated, acknowledging that he is a devil, but he has her completely in his grasp. They leave for Cherbourg and the carriage disappears into the darkness.


Cast

*
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as wel ...
as Célestine *
Vincent Lindon Vincent Lindon (born 15 July 1959) is a French actor and filmmaker. For his role in the film '' The Measure of a Man'' (2015), Lindon won Best Actor at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, Best Actor at the 41st César Awards and the IFFI Best Actor A ...
as Joseph *
Clotilde Mollet Clotilde Mollet is a French actress. Theatre Filmography References External links * * French film actresses 20th-century French actresses 21st-century French actresses Actresses from Paris Living people French stage actresses Fr ...
as Madame Lanlaire * Hervé Pierre as Monsieur Lanlaire * Mélodie Valemberg as Marianne *
Patrick d'Assumçao Patrick d'Assumçao (born 1 June 1959) is a French actor. Theatre Filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:d'Assumcao, Patrick 1959 births 21st-century French male actors French male film actors French male stage actor ...
as Captain Mauger *
Vincent Lacoste Vincent Lacoste (born 3 July 1993) is a French actor. He began his acting career at the age of fifteen, playing the lead role of Hervé in the film ''The French Kissers''. The role won him the Lumières Award for Most Promising Actor and a nomin ...
as Georges * Joséphine Derenne as Madame Mendelssohn *
Dominique Reymond Dominique Reymond (born 12 February 1957) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than seventy films since 1984. She has been to the Geneva Conservatory. Selected filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Reymond, D ...
as the recruiter * Rosette as Rose *
Adriana Asti Adriana Asti (born 30 April 1931) is an Italian stage, film, and voice actress. Biography On stage, she starred in ''Saint Joan'' by George Bernard Shaw, ''Happy Days'' by Samuel Beckett, ''The Mistress of the Inn'' by Carlo Goldoni, and ''Thre ...
as the madam * Aurélia Petit as the mistress


Production


Development

On 9 February 2013, it was announced Benoît Jacquot would direct a film based on the 1900 novel '' The Diary of a Chambermaid''. Producer Kristina Larsen stated that "Jacquot’s version will be the most faithful adaptation of Mirbeau’s novel". In February 2013,
Marion Cotillard Marion Cotillard (; born 30 September 1975) is a French actress, film producer, singer, and environmentalist who is widely known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters in both European and Hollywood productions. She has received ...
was in talks to play the central character Célestine, but later dropped out of the film over scheduling conflicts with '' Macbeth''. On 5 February 2014, director Benoît Jacquot confirmed in an interview ''Diary of a Chambermaid'' will begin shooting in the forthcoming summer, with
Léa Seydoux Léa Hélène Seydoux-Fornier de Clausonne (; born 1 July 1985) is a French actor. Known for her roles in both French cinema and in Hollywood she's received various accolades including the Cannes Film Festival's Trophée Chopard in 2009 as wel ...
and
Vincent Lindon Vincent Lindon (born 15 July 1959) is a French actor and filmmaker. For his role in the film '' The Measure of a Man'' (2015), Lindon won Best Actor at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, Best Actor at the 41st César Awards and the IFFI Best Actor A ...
joining the cast of the film. On 10 April, Cineuropa reported that the
Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...
Region's Support Fund for the Film and Audiovisual Technical Industry added €440,000 to the film's funding.


Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
commenced on 10 June 2014 and concluded on 30 July. Filming took place in northern France (the heritage railway Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme,
Le Crotoy Le Crotoy () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. The inhabitants are known as ''Crotellois''. History Isabella of France, queen consort of England, and her son (later Edward III of England) embarked fro ...
, and
Berck Berck (), sometimes referred to as Berck-sur-Mer (, literally ''Berck on Sea''), is a commune in the northern French department of Pas-de-Calais. It lies within the Marquenterre regional park, an ornithological nature reserve. Geography Situa ...
) and also at locations in and around
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
.


Release

On 14 January 2015, it was announced that ''Diary of a Chambermaid'' had been selected to be screened in competition at the
65th Berlin International Film Festival The 65th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 5 to 15 February 2015, with American film director Darren Aronofsky as the President of the Jury. German film director Wim Wenders was presented with the Honorary Golden Bear. The ...
. The film was released to cinemas on 1 April 2015 in France.


Reception

Review aggregation website
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
reported an approval rating of 65%, based on 34 reviews, with an average score of 5.99/10. At
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 56, based on 16 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
s
Ignatiy Vishnevetsky Ignatiy Igorevich Vishnevetsky (; russian: Игнатий Игоревич Вишневецкий; born September 5, 1986)Vishnevetsky, Ignati''Time Indefinite'': "A Talk with Sergei Loznitsa" '' Mubi'' is a Russian-American film critic, essayi ...
opined that the film "lacks a unifying principle, as though the director were too eager to address subtexts to bother with text," and concluded: "Nominally, ''Diary Of A Chambermaid'' is about the moral rot hiding below, but its most lasting impressions come from surface pleasures and barely motivated flourishes of style."


Accolades


References


External links

* {{Benoît Jacquot 2015 films 2010s French-language films 2010s historical drama films French historical drama films Films about interclass romance Films set in country houses Films set in the 1900s Films shot in France Belgian historical drama films Films based on French novels Films directed by Benoît Jacquot Maids in films Le Journal d'une femme de chambre Films featuring a Best Actor Lumières Award-winning performance 2015 drama films Films scored by Bruno Coulais French-language Belgian films 2010s French films Films based on works by Octave Mirbeau