''The King's Whore'' (french: La putain du roi, it, La puttana del re) is a 1990

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Axel Corti Axel Corti (born ''Axel Fuhrmanns''; 7 May 1933 – 29 December 1993) was an Austrian screenwriter, film director and radio host. Life He was born in Paris. His father was a businessman of Austrian and Italian descent, his mother was from Berlin. ...

and starring

Timothy Dalton Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett (; born 21 March 1946) is a British actor. Beginning his career on stage, he made his film debut as Philip II of France in the 1968 historical drama ''The Lion in Winter''. He gained international prominence as ...

. It was entered into the

1990 Cannes Film Festival The 43rd Cannes Film Festival was held from 10 to 21 May 1990 in film, 1990. The Palme d'Or went to ''Wild at Heart (film), Wild at Heart'' by David Lynch. The festival opened with ''Dreams (1990 film), Dreams'', directed by Akira Kurosawa and clo ...

Plot

Set in the 17th century, an Italian nobleman weds an impoverished countess, who is wooed by the Duke of Piedmont and faces pressure from his entire court to succumb to his wishes.

Cast

Vittorio Amedeo II Victor Amadeus II (Vittorio Amedeo Francesco; 14 May 166631 October 1732) was Duke of Savoy from 1675 to 1730. He also held the titles of Prince of Piedmont, Duke of Montferrat, Marquis of Saluzzo and Count of Aosta, Moriana and Nice. Louis XIV ...

Valeria Golino Valeria Golino (born 22 October 1965) is an Italian actress and film director. She is best known to English-language audiences for her roles in ''Rain Man'', ''Big Top Pee-wee'' and the two ''Hot Shots!'' films, particularly the olive-in-the-bell ...

as Jeanne de Luynes *

Stéphane Freiss Stéphane Freiss (born 22 November 1960) is a French film, television, and stage actor. He won a César Award for his performance in the 1988 film ''Chouans!''. Selected filmography *'' Premiers désirs'' (1984) *''Vagabond'' (1985) *''Chou ...

as Le Comte di Verrua *

Robin Renucci Robin Renucci (born 11 July 1956, in Le Creusot, Saône-et-Loire) is a French film and television actor and film director. Acting filmography * ''Eaux profondes'' (1981) : ''Ralph'' * ''Les Misérables'' (1982) : ''Courfeyrac'' * ''Invitation ...

Charles de Luynes Charles d'Albert, Duke of Luynes (, 5 August 1578 – 15 December 1621) was a Kingdom of France, French courtier and a favourite of Louis XIII of France, Louis XIII. In 1619, the king made him Duke of Luynes and a Peer of France, and in 1621, ...

Margaret Tyzack Margaret Maud Tyzack (9 September 193125 June 2011) was an English actress. Her television roles included ''The Forsyte Saga'' (1967) and ''I, Claudius'' (1976). She won the 1970 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for the BBC serial ''The First Ch ...

as La Comtesse douairière *

Eleanor David Maria Eleanor David (born 30 November 1955) is an English actress who has worked on projects in the UK, the US and New Zealand. She won positive reviews for her starring role in the biopic '' Sylvia'', in which she played pioneering educational ...

as La Reine *

Paul Crauchet Paul Crauchet (14 July 1920 – 19 December 2012) was a French actor. Biography As a young man interested in aviation and rugby, Paul Crauchet discovered a passion for the theatre at the age of 23. He settled in Paris in 1945, he studied un ...

as Le Duc de Luynes * Amy Werba as Heloïse * Franco Valobra as Le Duc d'Aoste *

Francesca Reggiani Francesca is an Italian female given name, derived from the Latin male name ''Franciscus'' meaning 'the Frenchman' It is widely used in most Romance languages, including Italian language, Italian, French language, French and Catalan language, Cata ...

as Marie Christine * Leonardo Ruta as Le Prince Vittorio *

Luigi Bonos Luigi Bonos (1910–2000) was an Italian comedian and stage, television and film actor. He appeared in more than 70 films between 1945 and 1992. Born in Berlin, Germany, the son of two Hungarian circus artists, along with his brothers Vitto ...

as 2nd Priest (as Gigi Bonos) *

Elisabeth Kaza Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

as Countess Trevie (as Elizabeth Kaza) *

Lea Padovani Lea Padovani (28 July 1920 – 23 June 1991) was an Italian film actress. She appeared in 60 films between 1945 and 1990. She starred in the film '' Black Dossier'' which was entered into the 1955 Cannes Film Festival. Partial filmography ...

as Countess Cumiana *

Anna Bonaiuto Anna Bonaiuto (born 28 January 1950) is an Italian actress. She has appeared in 48 films and television shows since 1973. She starred in '' L'amore molesto'', which was entered into the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. Selected filmography Referen ...

as Countess Longhi

Release

Originally picked up by

Miramax Films Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey Weinstein, Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California. It was ...

for U.S. distribution, the film was never given the benefit of a U.S. theatrical release. The film was shown at various film festivals and in theaters overseas. The film was finally released on videocassette in 1993 by

Vidmark Entertainment Trimark Pictures was an American production company that specialized in the production and distribution of television and home video motion pictures. The company was formed in 1984 by Mark Amin as Vidmark Entertainment with Vidmark Inc. (late ...

in the United States and in Canada by C/FP Video. In 2002, the film was released on a budget DVD by Platinum Disc.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kings Whore, The 1990 films 1990s French-language films 1990s English-language films 1990 drama films French drama films Italian drama films British drama films Films directed by Axel Corti Films set in Italy Films set in the 17th century Films set in the 18th century Films scored by Gabriel Yared English-language French films English-language Italian films 1990 multilingual films 1990s British films 1990s French films