''Maîtresse'' (French for "mistress" or "teacher") is a 1975 French

sex comedy Sex comedy, erotic comedy or more broadly sexual comedy is a genre in which comedy is motivated by sexual situations and love affairs. Although "sex comedy" is primarily a description of dramatic forms such as theatre and film, literary works such ...

film co-written and directed by

Barbet Schroeder Barbet Schroeder (born 26 August 1941) is an Iranian-born Swiss film director and producer who started his career in French cinema in the 1960s, working with directors such as Jean-Luc Godard and Jacques Rivette. Since the late 1980s, he has dire ...

, starring

Bulle Ogier Bulle Ogier (born Marie-France Thielland; 9 August 1939) is a French actress and screenwriter. She adopted the professional surname Ogier, which was her mother's maiden name. Her first appearance on screen was in ''Voilà l'Ordre'', a short film ...

and, in one of his earliest leading roles,

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu, CQ (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor, filmmaker, businessman and vineyard owner since 1989 who is one of the most prolific thespians in film history having completed over 250 films since 1967 alm ...

. The film provoked controversy in the United Kingdom and the United States due to its graphic depictions of

BDSM BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged ...

Plot

Olivier, a naive provincial, comes to Paris and looks up a friend, who enlists him to sell books door to door. Ariane, an attractive young woman in her dressing gown asks them in to help, as the bath she was running has overflowed. Asked about the apartment beneath, she says the owners are away. That night the two break in to rob the place, and find it is the torture chamber of a professional

dominatrix A dominatrix (; ) or femdom is a woman who takes the dominant role in BDSM activities. A dominatrix can be of any sexual orientation, but this does not necessarily limit the genders of her submissive partners. Dominatrices are known for inflic ...

. In fact it is Ariane's workplace and she catches the intruders, asking Olivier for brief help with a client and paying him afterwards. Olivier becomes her live-in lover, thinking he will be the strong man for a vulnerable woman, but she is older, tougher, and a lot wiser. She tries to keep her work separate, but he struggles over the number of other men who call and the things she does with them. Eventually, his blundering efforts to take charge lead to a crisis. Her wealthy protector, who has allowed her to enjoy herself by taking a lover and running her own business, shuts it down and takes her to his country house to be with her child. When Olivier tracks her down, she takes him for a drive through the woods and crashes the car as they are making love on the move. Both emerge laughing from the smoking wreckage.

Cast

as Ariane *

as Olivier * André Rouyer as Mario * Nathalie Keryan as Lucienne *

Roland Bertin Roland Bertin (born 16 November 1930) is a French stage and film actor. He has appeared in at least 100 films and television shows since 1970. Selected filmography * '' Le Petit théâtre de Jean Renoir'' (1970) (a.k.a. ''The Little Theatre of ...

as man in cage * as Emile *

Holger Löwenadler Holger Carl Minton Löwenadler (1 April 1904 – 18 June 1977) was a Swedish film actor. He starred in Ingmar Bergman's ''A Ship to India'' (1947). He appeared in ''Divorced'' (1951), which was written by Bergman. Other appearances include ...

as Gautier

Release in the United Kingdom

''Maîtresse'' was first submitted to the

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...

(BBFC) in 1976. Examiners' reports agreed that the film was well made and not exploitative, but under their censorship standards of the time it had to be refused a certificate: "the actual scenes of fetishism are miles in excess of anything we have ever passed in this field". This meant that it could not be shown in a public cinema and instead was given showings in private cinema clubs. However, in 1980, the film was subsequently re-examined for public release by the BBFC, and in February 1981 was granted an 'X' certificate in a cut version. To gain the certificate, a total of 4 minutes and 47 seconds' footage was removed from three scenes, most notably the scene in which Ariane nails a client's scrotum to a plank of wood, an act that was not simulated (and was not performed onscreen by Bulle OgierBulle Ogier interview, ''Films Illustrated'' magazine, October 1980.). In 2003, the film was submitted for a third time, and was passed for an 18 certificate with all previous cuts waived. In November 2012, ''Maîtresse'' was released in a new Blu-ray Disc/DVD dual-format edition by the

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

, its first appearance on Blu-ray Disc. The film was rated X in the United States. It was rated R18 in New Zealand for sexual violence, sex scenes and offensive language.

References

External links

* * *
''Maîtresse''
– an essay by

Elliott Stein Elliott Stein (December 5, 1928 – November 7, 2012) was an American journalist and historian. In the 1950s he managed a literary review in Paris: "Janus." He also wrote for the review "Bizarre" with Kenneth Anger. He worked with Anger on Anger ...

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 ...

1975 films 1975 comedy films 1970s French-language films 1970s satirical films 1970s sex comedy films BDSM in films Films directed by Barbet Schroeder Films set in Paris Films shot in Paris French satirical films French sex comedy films Gaumont Film Company films 1970s French films {{erotic-comedy-film-stub

Plot

Cast

Release in the United Kingdom

See also

References

External links