''A Woman Is a Woman'' (french: Une femme est une femme) is a 1961 French

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film written and directed by

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

, starring

Jean-Paul Belmondo Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo (; 9 April 19336 September 2021) was a French actor and producer. Initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s, he was a major French film star for several decades from the 1960s onward. His best known credits ...

Anna Karina Anna Karina (born Hanne Karin Blarke Bayer; September 22, 1940 – December 14, 2019)

and

Jean-Claude Brialy Jean-Claude Brialy (30 March 1933 – 30 May 2007) was a French actor and film director. Early life Brialy was born in Aumale (now Sour El-Ghozlane), French Algeria, where his father was stationed with the French Army. Brialy moved to mainland ...

. It is a tribute to American

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

and associated with the

French New Wave French New Wave (french: La Nouvelle Vague) is a French art film movement that emerged in the late 1950s. The movement was characterized by its rejection of traditional filmmaking conventions in favor of experimentation and a spirit of iconocla ...

. It is Godard's third feature film (the release of his second, ''

Le petit soldat ''Le petit soldat'' () is a French film, written and directed by French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard in 1960, but not released until 1963. It was Godard's third film released with Anna Karina, who starred as Véronica Dreyer alongside Michel Subor (a ...

'', was delayed by censorship), and his first in color and

Cinemascope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

Plot

The film centers on the relationship of exotic dancer Angéla and her lover Émile. Angéla wants to have a child, but Émile is not ready. Émile's best friend Alfred also says he loves Angéla, and keeps up a gentle pursuit. Angéla and Émile argue about the matter; at one point they decide not to speak to each other, so continue their argument by pulling books from the shelf and pointing to the titles. Since Émile stubbornly refuses her request for a child, Angéla finally decides to accept Alfred's plea and sleeps with him. This proves that she will do what she must to have a child. She and Émile finally reconcile, so he has a chance to become the father. The two have sex, then engage in a bit of wordplay that gives the film its title: an exasperated Émile says "''Angéla, tu es infâme''" ("Angela, you are horrid"), and she retorts, "''Non, je suis une femme''" ("No, I am a woman").

Cast

Anna Karina Anna Karina (born Hanne Karin Blarke Bayer; September 22, 1940 – December 14, 2019)

as Angela *

as Émile Récamier *

as Alfred Lubitsch *

Henri Attal Henri Attal (1936 in Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely popula ...

as false blind man #2 (uncredited) * Karyn Balm as (uncredited) *

Dorothée Blank Frédérique Hoschedé (born 14 July 1953 in Paris), better known by the stage name Dorothée, is a French singer and television presenter. She was a continuity announcer on French public broadcaster Antenne 2 from 1977 to 1983, but she is be ...

as prostitute 3 (uncredited) *

Marie Dubois Marie Dubois (born Claudine Lucie Pauline Huzé; 12 January 1937 – 15 October 2014) was a Parisian-born French actress. Career She studied at l'École de la rue Blanche (ENSATT) and made her film debut in 1959, first gaining notice the next ...

as Angela's friend (uncredited) * Ernest Menzer as bar owner (uncredited) *

Jeanne Moreau Jeanne Moreau (; 23 January 1928 – 31 July 2017) was a French actress, singer, screenwriter, director, and socialite. She made her theatrical debut in 1947, and established herself as one of the leading actresses of the Comédie-Française. Mo ...

as woman in bar (herself) * Nicole Paquin as Suzanne (uncredited) *

Gisèle Sandré Gisele or Gisèle may refer to: Persons * Gisele (given name) * Gisele, mononym of Brazilian model Gisele Bündchen See also * Giselle (disambiguation) '' Giselle'' is a ballet. Giselle may also refer to: * ''Giselle'' (film), a film based on t ...

as prostitute 2 (uncredited) *

Marion Sarraut Marion Sarraut (13 August 1938 – 12 July 2021) was a French film and theatre director. Biography Born in Saigon in French Indochina, Marion was the granddaughter of former Prime Minister Albert Sarraut. She studied at the for three years, an ...

as prostitute 1 (uncredited) *

Dominique Zardi Dominique Zardi (born Emile Jean Cohen-Zardi; 2 March 1930 – 13 December 2009) was a French actor from Paris. He acted in more than 200 feature films, including ''Fantômas'' with Louis De Funès and Jean Marais. He died of cancer at the age of ...

as false blind man #1 (uncredited)

Awards

* 11th Berlin International Film Festival **

Silver Bear for Best Actress The Silver Bear for Best Actress (german: Silberner Bär/Beste Darstellerin) was an award presented at the Berlin International Film Festival from 1956 to 2020. It was given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance and was chos ...

(Karina - won) ** Silver Bear Extraordinary Jury Prize (won) **

Golden Bear The Golden Bear (german: Goldener Bär) is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The bear is the heraldic animal of Berlin, featured on both the coat of arms and flag of Berlin. History The winn ...

(nominated)

References

External links

* *
''A Woman Is a Woman''
an essay by

J. Hoberman James Lewis Hoberman (born March 14, 1949) is an American film critic, journalist, author and academic. He began working at ''The Village Voice'' in the 1970s, became a full-time staff writer in 1983, and was the newspaper's senior film critic ...

at the

Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scholars, cinep ...

1961 films 1961 musical comedy films 1961 romantic comedy films 1960s French-language films 1960s romantic musical films Films directed by Jean-Luc Godard Films produced by Carlo Ponti Films scored by Michel Legrand Films set in Paris Films shot in Paris French musical comedy films French romantic comedy films French romantic musical films 1960s French films {{romantic-musical-film-stub