L'Histoire d'Adèle H. (1975)

Great film. Smoothly and entertainingly told.

Love and hate are not far apart.

Good performances and Isabelle Adjani, who I actually first saw in "L'Ete Meurtrier", also manages to convince in this earlier film.

Translated from Dutch · View original

Excellent drama. The true story is based on the diary of Victor Hugo's mentally ill daughter, who is obsessively in love with a British soldier and pursues him all the way to Halifax under an alias. The soldier himself, however, is completely uninterested in her, but Adele harms the man with her delusions and accompanying behavior. For example, she sends a false report of their marriage to the world.. I wasn't familiar with this story, but the theatrical performance of Adjani, who was only nineteen at the time, is thrilling, and Truffaut is a director who can portray passionate love stories with talent.

Translated from Dutch · View original

I wanted to see this film primarily because François Truffaut made it, but this one bears no resemblance to anything I've seen. Nevertheless, despite its solid quality (because this is simply a very classically made film), I did enjoy it. Adjani delivers a very intense, theatrical performance, which I think needs to be played that way to give some insight into her psyche, but it also meant I wasn't truly moved by it. However, as a reflection of the times and a glimpse into the life of Hugo's daughter, it's captivating. Visually, there are some nice shots, but the quality of the photography is rather poor. 3.5 stars.

Translated from Dutch · View original