The Libertine (1968 film)
| The Libertine | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Pasquale Festa Campanile |
| Written by | Nicolò Ferrari Ottavio Jemma |
| Produced by | Silvio Clementelli |
| Starring | Catherine Spaak Jean-Louis Trintignant Gigi Proietti |
| Cinematography | Alfio Contini |
| Edited by | Sergio Montanari |
| Music by | Armando Trovajoli |
Production companies | Clesi Cinemtografica Finanziaria San Marco |
| Distributed by | Audubon Films |
Release date | 15 May 1969 |
Running time | 90 mins |
| Language | Italian |
| Box office | 128,378 admissions (France) $359,883 (Spain)[1] |
The Libertine (La Matriarca; a.k.a. The Matriarch) is an 1969 Italian film directed by Pasquale Festa Campanile.
Plot
This is a sex comedy film about Mimi (Catherine Spaak), a young widow who discovers that her recently deceased husband kept a secret apartment for his kinky desires. Frustrated that he did not explore his sexual fantasies with his wife, she embarks on a quest to understand perversion and sexuality. She uses her late husband's apartment to seduce various men, each time learning more about the depths of human depravation, as well as the extent of the sexual double standard for women (late in the film, she states, "I notice men only call me a whore when I say no. Or stop saying yes.")
Finally, she meets the man who shares himself fully with her, appreciates her sexual daring and accepts her for whoever she is.
Cast
- Catherine Spaak as Margherita, aka Mimmi
- Jean-Louis Trintignant as Dr. Carlo De Marchi
- Gigi Proietti as Sandro Maldini
- Luigi Pistilli as Otto Frank, aka Mr. X
- Renzo Montagnani as Fabrizio
- Nora Ricci as Mimmi's Mother
- Vittorio Caprioli as The Librarian
- Frank Wolff as Dr. Giulio
- Edda Ferronao as Maria
- Paolo Stoppa as Professor Zauri
- Philippe Leroy as The Tennis Instructor
- Venantino Venantini as Aurelio
- Gabriele Tinti as The Man in the Car
Reception
The New York Times said the film was "not nearly as clever, sophisticated and amusing as it archly pretends."[2] The Guardian called it "pseudo-sophisticated, so fake as to be positively sick making and, what is more, thoroughly unerotic."[3] The Washington Post complained "the film's own attitudes are far too conventional".[4] The Los Angeles Times thought the movie was "at times... pretty hot stuff... has a little more style and wit than most Radley Metzger releases."[5] The Chicago Tribune thought the film was "more clumsy than clever... just as unimaginative as the film it attempts to parody."[6]
See also
References
- ^ Box office information for the film at Box Office Story
- ^ Thompson, Howard (May 16, 1969). "Screen: Restless Widow: The Libertine' Stars Catherine Spaak". New York Times. p. 41.
- ^ Malcolm, Derek (15 Aug 1969). "The slow, the bad, and Buster". The Guardian. London (UK). p. 6.
- ^ Gary Arnold. (Aug 16, 1969). "A Comic 'Libertine'". The Washington Post. p. C6.
- ^ Thomas, Kevin. (Aug 20, 1969). "MOVIE REVIEW: 'Libertine' Westwood Run". Los Angeles Times. p. e19.
- ^ Clifford, Terry. (Aug 25, 1969). "The Movies: 'The Libertine'". Chicago Tribune. p. a9.
