Belle de jour (1967)

Director:

Luis Buñuel

Writers:

Luis Buñuel (writer)
Jean-Claude Carrière (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

10 April 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Luis Bunuel's Masterpiece of Erotica!

Plot:

A frigid young housewife decides to spend her midweek afternoons as a prostitute.

Plot Keywords:

Whipping | Sexual Perversion | Champagne | Ski Resort | Cigarette Smoking

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 4 wins

Cast

Catherine Deneuve	...	Séverine Serizy aka Belle de Jour
Jean Sorel	...	Pierre Serizy
Michel Piccoli	...	Henri Husson
Geneviève Page	...	Madame Anais
Pierre Clémenti	...	Marcel
Françoise Fabian	...	Charlotte
Macha Méril	...	Renee
Muni	...	Pallas
Maria Latour	...	Mathilde
Claude Cerval
Michel Charrel	...	Footman
Iska Khan	...	Asian client
Bernard Musson	...	Majordomo
Marcel Charvey	...	Prof. Henri
François Maistre	...	L'ensignant
Francisco Rabal	...	Hyppolite
Georges Marchal	...	Duke
Francis Blanche	...	Monsieur Adolphe
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Adélaïde Blasquez	...	Maid (uncredited)
Luis Buñuel	...	Man in Gardencafe - Left from the Duke (uncredited)
Dominique Dandrieux	...	Severine as a child (uncredited)
D. De Roseville	...	Coachman (uncredited)
Marc Eyraud	...	Barman (uncredited)
Bernard Fresson	...	Le grele (uncredited)
Pierre Marcay	...	Intern (uncredited)
Brigitte Parmentier	...	Severine enfant (uncredited)

Directed by
Luis Buñuel

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Luis Buñuel		writer
Jean-Claude Carrière		writer
Joseph Kessel		novel

Produced by
Henri Baum	....	producer
Raymond Hakim	....	producer
Robert Hakim	....	producer

Cinematography by
Sacha Vierny

Film Editing by
Louisette Hautecoeur

Production Design by
Robert Clavel

Set Decoration by
Robert Clavel

Costume Design by
Yves Saint-Laurent

Makeup Department
Janine Jarreau	....	makeup artist
Simone Knapp	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Marc Goldstaub	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jacques Fraenkel	....	assistant director
Pierre Lary	....	assistant director

Art Department
Maurice Barnathan	....	set designer
Marc Desages	....	assistant decorator (as Marc Robert Desages)
Pierre Roudeix	....	property master

Sound Department
Pierre Davoust	....	sound
René Longuet	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Philippe Brun	....	camera operator
Lionel Legros	....	second assistant camera
Pierre Li	....	assistant camera
Raymond Voinquel	....	still photographer

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Hélène Nourry	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Walter Spohr	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Henri Baum	....	production manaager
Jacqueline Delhomme	....	secretary
Robert Demollière	....	administrator
Suzanne Durrenberger	....	script girl

Production Companies

• Paris Film
• Five Film

Distributors

• Valoria Films (1967) (France) (theatrical)
• Alta Films (1967) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Inter-Verleih Film-Gesellschaft (1967) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Allied Artists Pictures (1968) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Argentina Video Home (Argentina) (video)
• Criterion Collection, The (laserdisc)
• Lumière Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• MFA Filmdistribution (1999) (Germany) (re-release)
• Miramax Films (USA) (theatrical)
• Miramax Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Miramax Zoë (1995) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Studio Canal (2003) (France) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Beauty of the Day (International: English title) (literal title)
Bella di giorno (Italy)
Belle de jour (USA)

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

Spanish | French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Portugal:M/16 | Philippines:R-18 | France:-12 | Finland:K-16 (1988) | South Korea:18 | Finland:K-18 (1968) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Norway:15 (re-rating) | Norway:16 (original rating) | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R | Ireland:18

Filming Locations:

1 Square Albin-Cachot, Paris 13, Paris, France

Company:

Paris Film

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [Luis Buñuel]Sitting in the outdoor café when the Duke gets off his carriage.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the client that wants to be spanked rejects Belle Du Jour she puts her robe back on but not her bra. Then when she sees the Asian client a few moments later, she takes off her robe and her bra is on.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Sal de Prata (2005)

One of Bunuel's more well-known works; an interesting morality story with Deneuve

Luis Bunuel, notorious for his use of simple, striking, yet un-cannily affecting surrealism in movies, keeps it down to a lower (yet still imaginative) key for Belle Du Jour. This works though because un-like a film like Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie where surrealism was like another character amidst the other character's dreams and nightmares, this one only keeps in surrealism for the sake of the lead character's inner demons poking up through the every-day malaise. This lead, Severine, is played in one of Catherine Deneuve's key career performances, that finds that two-sided-ness she feels while married to her husband Pierre. She loves him, but there's something that she's not getting out of the marriage that's leaving her empty, aimless, and her fantasies- however in the realm of (dark) fantasy- go to show she needs to do something during the day. She then finds out about a high-class brothel with only a couple of workers already employed. At first reluctant, she gives in to her temptations, serving the odder types of Paris looking for a good time, with one of them, Marcel (Pierre Clementi) falling head over heels for her.

What seemed most intriguing about the film was how Bunuel dealt with the themes- the two crucial ones being morality and sexuality. His imagery is direct, maybe too direct, but it gets its points across with a realism that is alluring and far & away (almost like a satire of such a life). She can't stop what she's started, and she doesn't really know how to end it unless she gets caught. Then with the sexuality, it's never over-emphasized (i.e. no nudity, outside of a quick couple of shots of nudity), and no one is shown having sex on screen. What comes out is the emotional tally of Severine, the other girls, and the supporting characters that come in and out of the brothel. It may seem dated at moments, and the observatory notes go to making the film seem a tad longer than it is. But never-the-less, Belle de Jour is a worthwhile, memorable effort of the 1960's cinema. And, at times, it's quite funny.