| The Hairdresser's Husband | |
|---|---|
 French theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Patrice Leconte |
| Written by | Patrice Leconte Claude Klotz |
| Produced by | Thierry de Ganay |
| Starring | Jean Rochefort Anna Galiena |
| Cinematography | Eduardo Serra |
| Edited by | Joëlle Hache |
| Music by | Michael Nyman |
| Distributed by | AMLF |
Release date |
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Running time | 82 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Box office | $2.71 million[1] |
The Hairdresser's Husband (French:Le Mari de la coiffeuse), a 1990 Frenchcomedy-drama film written byPatrice Leconte andClaude Klotz, and directed by Leconte.Jean Rochefort stars as the title character.
The film received thePrix Louis Delluc. In 1991 it was nominated for "Best Foreign-Language Film" in theBritish Academy Film Awards.
The film begins with a flashback from the titular character, Antoine. We are introduced to his fixation with femalehairdressers which began at a young age. The film uses flashbacks throughout and there are frequent parallels drawn with the past. Though Antoine tells Mathilde that 'the past is dead', his life is evidence that on some level the past repeats itself. As a young boy he fantasised about a hairdresser who died by suicide and as a man in his 50s he begins an affair with a hairdresser which ends after ten years in her suicide. However, there are differences: Mathilde dies by suicide because she is so happy she is afraid of the happiness she has found with Antoine ending.
We are unsure what Antoine has done with his life; we know, however, that he has fulfilled his childhood ambition: to marry a hairdresser. The reality proves to be every bit as wonderful as the fantasy and the two enjoy an enigmatic, enclosed and enchanting relationship. The final sequence shows Antoine, in the salon, dancing to Eastern music just as he has done throughout his life. His last line is the enigmatic comment that the hairdresser will return.
The film received the 1990Prix Louis Delluc which it shared withLe Petit Criminel byJacques Doillon. American film criticRoger Ebert added this to his "Great Movies" list on January 27, 2010.[2] The film was nominated for theGrand Prix of theBelgian Syndicate of Cinema Critics.
The Hairdresser's Husband was released on DVD by Umbrella Entertainment in April 2011. The DVD is compatible region code 4.[3]
| The Hairdresser's Husband | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | September 21, 1992 | |||
| Genre | Middle Eastern | |||
| Label | Soundtrack Listeners Communications | |||
| Michael Nyman chronology | ||||
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The soundtrack[4] wascomposed byMichael Nyman and also contains a great deal of Middle Eastern popular music. It was first released as an album in Japan by Soundtrack Listeners Communications (SLC) September 21, 1992, and has subsequently been released elsewhere.
