
Dangerous Liaisons
1988 · Movie · R · 119 min · ★ 7.2 · 83% critics
In 18th-century France, two wealthy aristocrats turn seduction into a high-stakes game, using secrets, letters, and social power to ruin reputations. What begins as a calculated wager spirals into tangled rivalries and unintended consequences, as desire and pride collide in a world built on appearances.
Based on Les Liaisons dangereuses
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Details
- Years
- 1988
- Release date
- 1988-12-21
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 119 min
- Critic score
- 83/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.2/10 (1,272 votes)
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want a stylish, biting period drama about manipulation, desire, and social games, with plenty of twists and sharp exchanges; Not for you if you dislike morally bleak stories or dense dialogue like in The Age of Innocence.
Pros: wickedly entertaining intrigue; sharp, witty dialogue; lavish costumes and settings | Cons: cruel, unsettling themes; talky, slow stretches; one weak performance
Themes
- plan
- lovesickness
- paris, france
- based on novel or book
- cheating
- cynic
- sexuality
- boredom
- praise
- lover
- ladykiller
- fiancé
- +10 more
Awards & recognition
- BAFTA Award — Best Screenplay · 1990
- BAFTA Award — Best Actress in a Supporting Role · 1990
- Academy Award — Best Production Design · 1989
- Academy Award — Best Costume Design · 1989
- Academy Award — Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay · 1989
Show all 15 awards →
- Writers Guild of America Award — Best Adapted Screenplay · 1989
- César Award — Best Foreign Film
- National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
- Academy Award — Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay · 1989 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Supporting Actress · 1989 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Costume Design · 1989 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Original Score · 1989 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Picture · 1989 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Production Design · 1989 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Actress · 1989 · nominated
Cast & crew

Glenn Close
as Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil

John Malkovich
as Vicomte Sébastien de Valmont

Michelle Pfeiffer
as Madame Marie de Tourvel

Uma Thurman
as Cécile de Volanges

Swoosie Kurtz
as Madame de Volanges

Keanu Reeves
as Le Chevalier Raphael Danceny

Mildred Natwick
as Madame de Rosemonde

Peter Capaldi
as Azolan

Joe Sheridan
as Georges

Valerie Gogan
as Julie
Directed by Stephen Frears