Venus Beauty Institute
Encyclopedia
Venus Beauty Institute is a 1999 French
movie, telling the story of three employees of a beauty parlor in search of love and happiness.
The film is directed by Tonie Marshall. It stars Nathalie Baye
, Bulle Ogier
, Samuel Le Bihan
, Jacques Bonnaffé, Mathilde Seigner
, Audrey Tautou
, Robert Hossein
, Claire Denis
, Micheline Presle
, Emmanuelle Riva
and Elli Medeiros
.
It won the César Award
for Best Film
, Best Director
, Best Writing
and Most Promising Actress
.
Tagline: Welcome to the Venus Beauty Institute where love, innocence and sex are a sight to behold.
Venus Beauty Institute is run by Nadine, and Angèle's co-workers include Samantha, who has a string of dates and gives Angèle their descriptions, and Marie, the youngest who is still learning the ropes. The co-workers' love lives contrast with Angèle's. Marie has as her client an aging pilot, who had been burnt and had his face reconstructed from his late wife's skin. The pilot wants Marie to come to his house, which she eventually does, watched by Angèle and Antoine. Angèle is concerned that Marie is too naïve and that the pilot invited her to his house to seduce her. As Marie and the pilot kiss each other, Angèle and Antoine also start kissing.
Christmas is approaching, and Angèle goes to her aunts in Poitiers. Antoine had revealed that he is a sculptor, and had been commissioned to do an altarpiece for the cathedral there. She goes the cathedral to see the artwork, but changes her mind when an old friend recognizes her. Returning to Paris, Angèle goes to the hospital to visit Samantha, who had drugged herself. Samantha reveals that Nadine is starting a new store, and that she found a new girl to temporarily replace Samantha. However, the new girl, Evelyne, turns out to be a disaster, wanting to arrange the products by colour rather than function, and eventually quits.
Meanwhile, Antoine's fiancée had followed him and seen him leave the store with Angèle. She goes to the store as a client, and confides to Angèle that her fiancé is seeing someone else, but she thinks he still loves her. Later, when Antoine takes Angèle shopping, Antoine's fiancée comes into the store; Angèle sees them together and thinks Antoine has betrayed her. She phones Antoine to tell her call their relationship off. To make amends, as Angèle is left to close the store on New Year's Eve, Antoine comes to the store with a present. It is a new dress. Antoine's fiancée sees this and comes into the store with a gun, but when she fires all she succeeds in hitting is the lights. As the sparks fly, Antoine and Angèle kiss each other.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
movie, telling the story of three employees of a beauty parlor in search of love and happiness.
The film is directed by Tonie Marshall. It stars Nathalie Baye
Nathalie Baye
Nathalie Marie Andrée Baye is a French film, television, and stage actress. After having dance and dramatic education, Baye began acting in 1970. She has appeared in more than 70 films. She won four César Awards for Sauve qui peut , Une étrange affaire , La Balance , and Le Petit Lieutenant...
, Bulle Ogier
Bulle Ogier
Bulle Ogier is a French actress.Ogier's first appearance on screen was in Voilà l'Ordre, a short film directed by Jacques Baratier with a number of the then-emerging young singers of the 1960s in France, including Boris Vian, Claude Nougaro, etc.She worked with Jacques Rivette Bulle Ogier (born...
, Samuel Le Bihan
Samuel Le Bihan
Samuel Le Bihan is a French actor, notable for his role in Brotherhood of the Wolf.-Cinema:* 1993: Promenades d'été, directed by René Féret* 1993: La place d'un autre, directed by René Féret...
, Jacques Bonnaffé, Mathilde Seigner
Mathilde Seigner
Mathilde Seigner is a French actress.Mathilde Seigner was born in Paris, France. She is the granddaughter of the respected French actor Louis Seigner . She is the sister of the actresses Emmanuelle Seigner and Marie-Amelie Seigner, and the niece of Françoise Seigner...
, Audrey Tautou
Audrey Tautou
Audrey Justine Tautou is a French model and film actress, best known for playing the title character in the award-winning 2001 film Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain, Sophie Neveu in the 2006 thriller The Da Vinci Code, Irène in Priceless and Coco Chanel in Coco avant Chanel...
, Robert Hossein
Robert Hossein
Robert Hossein is a French film actor of Azeri origin, director and writer. He directed the 1982 adaption of Les Misérables, and appeared in Vice and Virtue, Le Casse, Les Uns et les Autres and Venus Beauty Institute...
, Claire Denis
Claire Denis
Claire Denis is a French film director and Professor of Film at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland.-Early life:...
, Micheline Presle
Micheline Presle
Micheline Presle is a French actress also known in English language films as Micheline Prelle.Born Micheline Nicole Julia Émilienne Chassagne in Paris, she wanted to be an actress from an early age. She took acting classes in her early teens and made her film debut at the age of fifteen in the...
, Emmanuelle Riva
Emmanuelle Riva
Emmanuelle Riva is a French actress.Riva started her acting career on the Paris stage after having worked as a seamstress...
and Elli Medeiros
Elli Medeiros
Elli Medeiros is a singer and actress .- The Stinky Toys :Medeiros moved to Paris, France, at the age of 14, dropped out of high school a couple of years later and joined the punk band The Stinky Toys....
.
It won the César Award
César Award
The César Award is the national film award of France, first given out in 1975. The nominations are selected by the members of the Académie des arts et techniques du cinéma....
for Best Film
César Award for Best Film
The winners and nominees of the César Award for Best Film .-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
, Best Director
César Award for Best Director
This is the list of winners and nominees of the César Award for Best Director .-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
, Best Writing
César Award for Best Writing
This is the list of winners and nominees of the César Award for Best Writing .-1975–1979:*1975: Bertrand Tavernier, Jean Aurenche: Que la fête commence...
and Most Promising Actress
César Award for Most Promising Actress
The following is the list of winners of the César Award for Most Promising Actress . Since its inception in 1983, the award is given as part of the French film industry's annual César Awards....
.
Tagline: Welcome to the Venus Beauty Institute where love, innocence and sex are a sight to behold.
Plot
Angèle is a 40 year old beautician who works at the title establishment in Paris. She has been an orphan from the age of eight, her father having killed her mother for suspected infidelity, and then killed himself when her infidelity was proved untrue. She picks up men to have short sex flings, but no longer believes in love, having hurt her former boyfriend, Jacques, whom she occasionally contacts out of loneliness, but who is never available at the same time as her. An unkempt younger man, Antoine, sees her at a cafe as she is being dumped by her latest fling, and falls in love with her. He stands outside the beauty shop to watch for her, and when he finally meets her he declares his love for her, but she does not immediately return his feelings. Also, Antoine reveals that despite his feelings for her, he is engaged, but feels he is drifting away from her. However, despite her refusal to believe in love, she gradually falls for him.Venus Beauty Institute is run by Nadine, and Angèle's co-workers include Samantha, who has a string of dates and gives Angèle their descriptions, and Marie, the youngest who is still learning the ropes. The co-workers' love lives contrast with Angèle's. Marie has as her client an aging pilot, who had been burnt and had his face reconstructed from his late wife's skin. The pilot wants Marie to come to his house, which she eventually does, watched by Angèle and Antoine. Angèle is concerned that Marie is too naïve and that the pilot invited her to his house to seduce her. As Marie and the pilot kiss each other, Angèle and Antoine also start kissing.
Christmas is approaching, and Angèle goes to her aunts in Poitiers. Antoine had revealed that he is a sculptor, and had been commissioned to do an altarpiece for the cathedral there. She goes the cathedral to see the artwork, but changes her mind when an old friend recognizes her. Returning to Paris, Angèle goes to the hospital to visit Samantha, who had drugged herself. Samantha reveals that Nadine is starting a new store, and that she found a new girl to temporarily replace Samantha. However, the new girl, Evelyne, turns out to be a disaster, wanting to arrange the products by colour rather than function, and eventually quits.
Meanwhile, Antoine's fiancée had followed him and seen him leave the store with Angèle. She goes to the store as a client, and confides to Angèle that her fiancé is seeing someone else, but she thinks he still loves her. Later, when Antoine takes Angèle shopping, Antoine's fiancée comes into the store; Angèle sees them together and thinks Antoine has betrayed her. She phones Antoine to tell her call their relationship off. To make amends, as Angèle is left to close the store on New Year's Eve, Antoine comes to the store with a present. It is a new dress. Antoine's fiancée sees this and comes into the store with a gun, but when she fires all she succeeds in hitting is the lights. As the sparks fly, Antoine and Angèle kiss each other.
Cast
- Nathalie Baye - Angèle
- Bulle Ogier - Nadine
- Samuel Le Bihan - Antoine
- Jacques Bonnaffé - Jacques
- Mathilde Seigner - Samantha
- Audrey Tautou - Marie
- Robert Hossein - The Pilot
- Claire Denis - Asthmatic client
- Micheline PresleMicheline PresleMicheline Presle is a French actress also known in English language films as Micheline Prelle.Born Micheline Nicole Julia Émilienne Chassagne in Paris, she wanted to be an actress from an early age. She took acting classes in her early teens and made her film debut at the age of fifteen in the...
- Tante Maryse - Emmanuelle Riva - Tante Lyda
- Elli Medeiros - Evelyne
- Romain Goupil - Dr. Fremond