The Story of Adele H.
| The Story of Adele H. | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | François Truffaut |
| Produced by | Claude Miller Marcel Berbert |
| Written by | François Truffaut Suzanne Schiffman Jean Gruault |
| Starring | Isabelle Adjani Bruce Robinson Sylvia Marriott Joseph Blatchley |
| Release date(s) | October 8, 1975 |
| Running time | 96 min |
| Language | French/English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Story of Adele H. (also L'Histoire d'Adèle H.) is a 1975 English/French film which tells the story of the real-life Adèle Hugo, the daughter of writer Victor Hugo, whose obsessive unrequited love for a naval officer led to her downfall. The film is based on her diaries. It stars Isabelle Adjani, Bruce Robinson and Sylvia Marriott.
The movie was adapted by Jan Dawson, Jean Gruault, Frances Vernor Guille, Suzanne Schiffman and François Truffaut. It was directed by Truffaut.
Synopsis
The film tells the story of Adèle Hugo, the second daughter of Victor Hugo, who is devastated by the accidental death of her elder sister Léopoldine Hugo. Hugo is living in exile on the island of Guernsey where Adele meets and is seized by an obsessive love for a British officer, Lieutenant Pinson. She follows him to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Barbados, West Indies and gradually degenerates as she realizes her love is unrequited. She descends into despair and madness. She dies in Paris in 1915, in her 85th year, in the asylum to which her father had committed her.
Director's comments
About the film, Truffaut wrote:
- "In writing the script of 'L'Enfant sauvage' based on the memoirs of Dr Jean Itard, we discovered, Jean Gruault and myself, the enormous pleasure of writing historical fiction based on real events, without inventing anything and without altering documented facts. If it is difficult to construct an unanimistic intrigue involving a dozen characters whose paths entwine, it is almost as difficult to write an animistic film focusing on a single person. I believe that it was this solitary aspect which attracted me most to this project; having produced love stories involving two and three people, I wanted to attempt to create a passionate experience involving a character where the passion was one-way only."[citation needed]
Film locations
Many of the exterior scenes were shot on location in St Peter Port,Guernsey, and many of the film extras were well-known locals. Both Sir Raymond Falla and Sir Cecil de Sausmarez were, at the time, prominent island politicians. Scenes set in Halifax were mainly interiors and appear to be studio setups. They were not filmed in the city.
Cast
- Isabelle Adjani : Adèle Hugo
- Bruce Robinson : Lieutenant Albert Pinson
- Sylvia Mariott : Mrs Saunders
- Joseph Blatchley : Whistler, bookseller
- Ivry Gitlis : Hypnotist
- Ruben Dorey : Mr Saunders
- Clive Gillingham : Keaton
- Louise Bourdet : Victor Hugo's servant
- Sir Cecil de Sausmarez : Mr Lenoir, notary
- Sir Raymond Falla : Judge Johnstone
- Roger Martin : Dr Murdock
- Jean-Pierre Leursse : le scribe noir
- Carl Hathwell : Pinson's subaltern
- François Truffaut : officer (uncredited)
Awards
- Isabelle Adjani was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1975.
- fr:Prix Méliès, French award, for best film in 1976.
See also
External links
- L'Histoire d'Adèle H at the Internet Movie Database
- Reely's Poetry Pages Hear "Demain, des l'aube"
Further reading
- Hugo, Adèle, Le Journal d'Adèle Hugo. Introduction et notes par Frances Vernor Guille, Paris, 1968
| The Films of François Truffaut | |
|---|---|
| 1950s | Une Visite • Les Mistons • Une Histoire d'eau • The 400 Blows |
| 1960s | Shoot the Piano Player • Jules and Jim • Antoine and Colette • The Soft Skin • Fahrenheit 451 • The Bride Wore Black • Stolen Kisses • Mississippi Mermaid |
| 1970s | The Wild Child • Bed and Board • Two English Girls • Such a Gorgeous Kid Like Me • Day for Night • The Story of Adele H. • Small Change • The Man Who Loved Women • The Green Room • Love on the Run |
| 1980s | The Last Metro • The Woman Next Door • Confidentially Yours |
| Screenplay only | L'Agence Magique • Breathless • The Little Thief • Belle Époque |
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