ELLE-2016 Galas

Paul Verhoeven returns with his French-language debut and most sophisticated genre reworking to date. An adaptation of the French-Armenian novel “Oh…” by Philippe Djian, ELLE is a thriller as challenging as it is provocative. The inimitable Isabelle Huppert is Michèle LeBlanc, a successful video game company head who is brutally attacked in her home by a masked assailant. Having overcome family trauma and attained power in a male-dominated industry, Michèle has long cultivated a ruthless outward persona. In confronting her assault, she rejects victimization and, instead, determines to uncover the identity of her assailant, unwittingly drawing him into a perverse game of cat and mouse. Huppert wields both vulnerability and strength, lending a remarkable character of nuance and complexity to the body of work of an auteur all too often dismissed as camp. With ELLE and World Cinema entry THINGS TO COME (L’ AVENIR), Huppert‘s expansive range is on full display at AFI FEST this year.

Director Paul Verhoeven is one of the most provocative and controversial storytellers creating film entertainment today. His films reflect uncompromising vision, fascination with life’s moral dilemmas and honest depictions of sexuality and violence. They include international mega-hit ROBOCOP (1987), mind-tampering blockbuster TOTAL RECALL (1990), provocative drama BASIC INSTINCT (1992) and the robust and rousing STARSHIP TROOPERS (1997). This year’s ELLE competed for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Sony Pictures Classics

Details

Country: France

Year: 2016

Director: Paul Verhoeven

Screenwriter: David Birke

Producers: Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt

Director of Photography: Stéphane Fontaine

Editor: Job ter Burg

Production Designer: Laurent Ott

Music: Anne Dudley

Cast/Featuring: Isabelle Huppert, Laurent Lafitte, Anne Consigny, Charles Berling, Virginie Efira, Judith Magre, Christian Berkel, Jonas Bloquet, Alice Isaaz, Vimala Pons

Running Time (minutes): 131 min

Language: French

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