| Je Tu Il Elle | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Chantal Akerman |
| Written by | Chantal Akerman Eric de Kuyper Paul Paquay |
| Produced by | Chantal Akerman |
| Starring | Chantal Akerman Niels Arestrup Claire Wauthion |
| Cinematography | Bénédicte Delesalle |
| Edited by |
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| Release date |
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| Running time | 86 minutes |
| Countries | Belgium France |
| Language | French |
Je Tu Il Elle ([ʒə ty il ɛl]; English: "I You He She") is a 1974 French-Belgian film by the Belgian film director Chantal Akerman. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Teddy Awards, the film was selected to be shown at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival in February 2016.
Plot
Julie, the narrator of the film, lives alone in her room. For the first third of the film, she rearranges her furniture, writes letters, lounges naked, and eats sugar out of a paper bag. She eventually leaves her room and hitchhikes with a young male driver. They make stops at a restaurant, a bar, and a restroom. She gives him a handjob and he discusses his family life in a long monologue, before they part ways.
Julie then visits a woman, her ex-lover, who makes Julie sandwiches and a drink. Julie then suggestively begins to undress the woman, and they have sex. Julie's narration says the woman told her she had to leave in the morning, and she does.
Cast
- Chantal Akerman as Julie
- Niels Arestrup as the driver
- Claire Wauthion as the woman
Production
Akerman wrote the story for the film a few years prior to filming that she described once as both very personal along with not autobiographical due to its structure that mixes with her experiences as a teenager. The sex scene between Julie and her ex-lover is the first graphic lesbian sex scene in mainstream cinema, and one of the longest lesbian sex scenes in film.
Critical reception
The movie was well received by critics. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 100% rating based on reviews from 8 critics, and an average rating of 7.80/10.
References
- "Berlinale 2016: Panorama Celebrates Teddy Award's 30th Anniversary and Announces First Titles in Programme" (PDF). Berlin International Film Festival. 17 December 2015. Archived from the original on 21 December 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
- "B. Ruby Rich on Jeanne Dielman & her 1976 interview with Chantal Akerman. « Fondation Chantal Akerman".
- Bergstrom, Janet (November 1999). "Keeping a distance: Chantal Akerman's Jeanne Dielman". Sight & Sound. Retrieved 28 July 2022. (republished by BFI on 4 June 2021)
- Skinner, Oliver (October 14, 2015). "Rewatching the Queer Canon: Chantal Akerman's 'Je, tu, il, elle'". IndieWire. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
- Baker, Emily-Rose (June 23, 2022). "Chantal Akerman's Queer Jewish Cinema". Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
- "I, You, She, He". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
External links
- Je Tu Il Elle at IMDb
- Je Tu Il Elle at Rotten Tomatoes
- Je tu il elle at the British Film Institute
- Je tu il elle at The Criterion Collection
| Films directed by Chantal Akerman | |
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- 1974 films
- 1974 drama films
- 1974 independent films
- 1974 LGBTQ-related films
- 1970s feminist films
- 1970s French-language films
- Belgian drama films
- French drama films
- Belgian independent films
- French independent films
- French-language Belgian films
- Belgian LGBTQ-related films
- French LGBTQ-related films
- Lesbian-related films
- 1970s LGBTQ-related drama films
- Films directed by Chantal Akerman
- 1970s French films
- Belgian film stubs