Femme publique, La (1984)

75% of users liked it
(123 ratings)

An aspiring young actress (Valerie Kaprisky) accepts a leading role in a film version of Dostoyevsky's The Possessed. Dissatisfied by her performance, the eccentric filmmaker (Francis Huster) begins a rigorous course of indoctrination, sexual domination, and acting lessons, leaving the mentally… More An aspiring young actress (Valerie Kaprisky) accepts a leading role in a film version of Dostoyevsky's The Possessed. Dissatisfied by her performance, the eccentric filmmaker (Francis Huster) begins a rigorous course of indoctrination, sexual domination, and acting lessons, leaving the mentally exhausted girl unable to distinguish between the real world and that of the film. Arty, challenging, and some say over the top, the film was honored with the Special Jury Award at the Montreal World Film Festival in 1984. ~ Yuri German, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 55 min.
Directed By: Andrzej Zulawski
Written By: Dominique Garnier, Andrzej Zulawski
Genres: Art House & International, Drama

In Theaters: May 16, 1984 Wide

Critic Reviews

Jeremiah Kipp, Slant Magazine
Mondo Video should be commended for their handsome presentation of one of Zulawski's most lush, explosively romantic films.
Jeremiah Kipp, Slant Magazine
Though Kessling can be interpreted as a stand-in for Zulawski, Femme Publique is not his autobiography in the same way his previous film Possession was.

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Cast

Francis Huster
as Lucas Kessling
Valérie Kaprisky
as Ethel
Lambert Wilson
as Milan Mliska

Roger Dumas
as Andre
Yveline Ailhaud
as Rachel Ethel's Mother
Patrick Bauchau
as Ethel's father

See full cast

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