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Elective Affinities (1996)

Director: Paolo Taviani, Vittorio Taviani

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From Time Out Film Guide

The Tavianis' adaptation of Goethe's novel may seem strangely restrained compared to their other fables, but it's still a work of exquisite elegance and precision. Set in Tuscany during the Napoleonic era, it charts the forces of attraction and repulsion that shape the complex relationships between a happily married baron and his wife (Anglade, Huppert), the baron's architect friend (Bentivoglio) and the wife's goddaughter (Gillain). If the story itself (engrossing enough) never seems very much more than an unusually formal period romance, the immaculate performances and the Tavianis' masterly control of colour, composition and music (a poignant but unexpectedly modernist score from Carlo Crivelli) make for absorbing viewing.

Author: GA 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide

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Cast & crew

Director: Paolo Taviani, Vittorio Taviani

Producer: Grazia Volpi

Cast: Isabelle Huppert, Fabrizio Bentivoglio, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Marie Gillain, Massimo Popolizio, Laura Marinoni full cast

Duration: 98 mins


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