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Gilles' Wife (La Femme de Gilles) (2004)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 6.8/10
Reviews Counted: 22
Fresh: 18 | Rotten: 4

No consensus yet.

Average Rating: 6.7/10
Critic Reviews: 12
Fresh: 10 | Rotten: 2

No consensus yet.

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Average Rating: 3.8/5
User Ratings: 505

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Movie Info

A woman struggles to hold on to the man she loves in this drama set in the 1930s from Belgian filmmaker Fr�d�ric Fonteyne. Elisa (Emmanuelle Devos) is a housewife who is passionately devoted to her husband, Gilles (Clovis Cornillac), who works in a steel mill. Despite taking care of twin daughters and unfailingly seeing to the cooking and cleaning in their home, Elisa is as adoring of Gilles as she was on the day they met, and she eagerly tends to his ravenous sexual appetite. However, while

Unrated, 1 hr. 46 min.

Art House & International, Drama

Directed By: Fr�d�ric Fonteyne

Written By: Philippe Blasband

In Theaters: Nov 16, 2005 Limited

On DVD: Aug 8, 2006

Mars Distribution

Gilles' Wife (La Femme de Gilles) Trailer & Photos

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Cast

Critic Reviews for Gilles' Wife (La Femme de Gilles)

All Critics (26) | Top Critics (13) | Fresh (19) | Rotten (4) | DVD (4)

Easy to fall into, courtesy of the inviting, autumnal cinematography of Virginie Saint-Martin and the persuasive, committed and sensual performance of the title character, played by Emmanuelle Devos.

April 14, 2006 Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press

| Comment

Terry Lawson

Detroit Free Press

Top Critic

Told primarily via body language and facial expressions with a minimum of dialogue, beautifully observed, emotionally intense tale is an ambitious and rewarding outing for Frederic Fonteyne.

March 16, 2006 Full Review Source: Variety

| Comment

Lisa Nesselson

Variety

Top Critic

Gilles' Wife is a disquieting film of frustrating subtlety. But Devos is a compelling presence at the heart of it. She, and the scenery that is her backdrop, make it worth the three espressos you'll need to drink to stay awake through it all.

February 23, 2006 Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel

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Roger Moore

Orlando Sentinel

Top Critic

Like those '30 classics it suggests, Gilles' Wife seduces us with true cinematic magic: rich characters, great acting and that rapturous old French blend of realism and theatricality.

December 24, 2005 Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune

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Michael Wilmington

Chicago Tribune

Top Critic

I was fascinated by the face of Emmanuelle Devos, and her face is specifically why I recommend the movie.

December 22, 2005 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times

| Comment

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Top Critic

Fonteyne invests the material with a minimalist but powerful tension, and cinematographer Virginie Saint-Martin provides one beautifully composed visual after another.

December 12, 2005 Comment

Frank Scheck

Hollywood Reporter

Top Critic

A small, perfect storm of beautiful components brought together by Fonteyne and his team.

March 1, 2007 Full Review Source: Film Journal International

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Doris Toumarkine

Film Journal International

It's a French love story that's tragic (is there any other kind), but it does make you glad you're not in the middle of this menage a misery. It's definitely worth a look.

May 12, 2006 Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com

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Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone

TheMovieChicks.com

While Devos provides a striking depth of emotion as Elisa, her skills aren't quite enough to keep the movie from feeling cold and distant.

April 13, 2006 Full Review Source: Las Vegas Weekly

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Josh Bell

Las Vegas Weekly Source: Las Vegas Weekly

Were Hitchcock alive, he'd surely claim the ripe and faintly sinister Devos as his muse.

March 17, 2006 Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly

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Ella Taylor

L.A. Weekly

...there are copious rewards for the viewer who can let things unfold as they must.

March 16, 2006 Full Review Source: New Times

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Luke Y. Thompson

New Times

It comes off as reaching too far for originality, a sense that is only tied up with a ribbon by a completely dumb and desperate twist ending.

March 15, 2006 Full Review Source: Cinema Signals

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Jules Brenner

Cinema Signals

Somehow, the plot remains emotionally coherent -- involving, even -- amid a minimum of dialogue.

February 23, 2006 Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly

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Steve Schneider

Orlando Weekly

This is Devos' show: She has a face as expressive as any melodrama queen from Hollywood's golden age, and for anyone who's yet to experience the power of this singular performer, this is an excellent place to start.

November 18, 2005 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide

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Ken Fox

TV Guide's Movie Guide

More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Gilles' Wife (La Femme de Gilles)

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In "Gilles' Wife", Elisa(Emmanuelle Devos) is a housewife married to Gilles(Clovis Cornillac), a burly factory worker, and mother to two children, with a third one on the way. Her life is a happy one until she begins to suspect that Gilles is having an affair, even following him out into the snow one night. To make

April 27, 2007