Betty (film)
| Betty | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Claude Chabrol |
| Produced by | Canal + |
| Starring | Marie Trintignant, Stéphane Audran, Jean-François Garreaud |
| Music by | Sylvain Daurat |
Release date |
|
Running time | 103 min |
| Country | France[1] |
Betty is a French movie directed by Claude Chabrol based on the homonymous novel by Georges Simenon. It was first released in France in 1992.[2]
Plot
Betty (Marie Trintignant), a young alcoholic woman, is caught cold while cheating on her bourgeois husband. Wasting no time, he and his family arrange a quick divorce settlement, ousting her from home and keeping her away from the two children the couple have. One night she ends up in a restaurant called Le Trou (The Hole), where she meets Laure (Stéphane Audran), an older woman, an alcoholic herself. Laure decides to take care of Betty after hearing the heart-breaking stories of her being a victim of a rich and ruthless society. Betty receives care and friendship from Laure, who's in a relationship with Mario (Jean-Francois Garreaud), the restaurant's owner. The envy toward Laure for Mario grows each day and will drive Betty to artfully contrive the means to conquer her new friend's lover. Laure realizes she has made a mistake by trusting her new friend and things soon begin to tremble between them. Betty's true colors are now visible and she sees her life at a point of no return, as she selfishly stomped on the last chance she had been given to be a better person.[3]
Cast
- Marie Trintignant - Betty Etamble
- Stéphane Audran - Laure
- Jean-François Garreaud - Mario
- Yves Lambrecht - Guy Etamble
- Christiane Minazzoli - Madame Etamble
- Pierre Vernier - Le médecin
- Pierre Martot - Frédéric
- Thomas Chabrol - Schwartz
- Yves Verhoeven - Philippe
Reception
Journalist Lawrence O'Toole from Entertainment Weekly defined Marie Trintignant's performance "Smashing". EW's vote was a B+.[4] In the Chicago Sun Times Roger Ebert describes the film as a story of intertwined surprises, a film that doesn't have a plot per-se. The story is a chain reaction of events as this is the story of a woman who keeps tripping in her own faults and reckless behavior.[5] Megan Rosenfeld, staff writer at The Washington Post, appears to have found Marie Trintignant's performance a tad empty besides the contribution she gives to the movie through her beauty.[6]
References
- ^ "Betty". Le Figaro.
- ^ Janet Maslin. "Betty". The New York Times.
- ^ Lawrence Van Gelder (27 December 1991). "At The Movies". The New York Times.
- ^ Lawrence O'Toole (18 November 1994). "Video Review: "Betty"". Entertainment Weekly.
- ^ Roger Ebert. "Betty, by Roger Ebert". The Chicago Sun Times.
- ^ Megan Rosenfeld (15 September 1993). "Betty, by Megan Rosenfeld". The Washington Post.
External links
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