Belle de Jour
1967 · Movie · R · 100 min · ★ 7.3 · 90% critics
A young Parisian wife struggles to reconcile her private fantasies with her outwardly proper marriage. Drawn to a discreet, upscale brothel, she takes on a secret daytime double life, but the boundaries between desire and routine begin to blur as a client’s fixation threatens her carefully kept balance.
Also known as Beauty of the Day
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Streaming on HBO Max.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Original title
- Belle de jour
- Years
- 1967
- Release date
- 1967-05-24
- Language
- French
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 100 min
- Critic score
- 90/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.3/10 (1,018 votes)
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you’re open to an ambiguous, dreamlike story about desire, secrecy, and social masks; Not for you if you want clear answers, straightforward romance, or explicit erotica like you might expect.
Pros: stylish and captivating; intriguing, unusual story; dreamlike ambiguity | Cons: can be confusing; emotionally cold for some; requires close attention
Themes
- adultery
- prostitute
- jealousy
- dreams
- husband wife relationship
- dual identity
- double life
- sexual frustration
- brothel
- women's sexual identity
- masochism
- sexual exploration
Awards & recognition
- Golden Lion · 1967
Cast & crew
Catherine Deneuve
as Séverine Serizy
Jean Sorel
as Pierre Serizy
Michel Piccoli
as Henri Husson
Geneviève Page
as Madame Anais
Pierre Clémenti
as Marcel
Françoise Fabian
as Charlotte
Macha Méril
as Renée
Muni
as Pallas
Maria Latour
as Mathilde
Claude Cerval
as The Driver (uncredited)
Directed by Luis Buñuel