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| Andrzej Zulawski's La Femme Publique (The Public Woman, 1984) UNCUT Special Edition [Digipak] by MONDO VISION | ![Andrzej Zulawski's La Femme Publique (The Public Woman, 1984) UNCUT Special Edition [Digipak] by MONDO VISION](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/516JE7B8DLL.jpg)
| Director: Andrzej Zulawski
Actors: Francis Huster, Valerie Kaprisky, Lambert Wilson, Yveline Ailhaud, Diane Delor
Studio: Mondo Vision
Category: DVD
List Price: $34.99
Buy New: $24.99
You Save: $10.00 (29%)
Buy New/Used from $24.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  (4 reviews)
Sales Rank: 32212
Format: Anamorphic, Dolby, Ntsc, Widescreen
Language: French (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD
Running Time: 114 minutes
Number Of Items: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
UPC: 837654024652
EAN: 0837654024652
ASIN: B001BNSHZ0
Release Date: November 11, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Description
A young actress, Ethel, coming from nowhere, is trying to create a personality through her body and her indestructible resolve if necessary, through Elena, her lovers wife who has disappeared. Two men: Lucas Kesling, ambitious cinema director with diabolical powers, and Milan, fallen angel on an earth cracking beneath his feet, both fighting to possess Ethel. The restless filming of a viscontian movie adapted from Dostoyevsky's "The Possessed" in an opulent and smothering set. A political conspiracy conspiring to do away with the prelate from Eastern Europe, which Milan is inadvertently caught up in. An oppressing and eerie Paris transformed into an expressionist universe which these hunted characters are trying to escape from.
These are essential elements of La Femme Publique (The Public Woman), Andrzej Zulawksi's 6th film, where the obsessive themes of his dazzling career Trzecia Czesc Nocy (The Third Part of the Night,1971), L'Important C'est D'aimer (The Important Thing is to Love,1975), and Possession (1981) become entangled.
ANDRZEJ ZULAWSKI's La Femme Publique is a cinematic milestone rich with extreme imagery and raw emotions. Twenty five years after its controversial inception at the Cannes Film Festival, this story of a young, struggling actress retains the power to shock even the most seasoned of movie goers with its violently stylish, apocalyptic tone. A woman s destiny, divided between angel and demon...An hour and 54 minutes of painful happiness, La Femme Publique scratches the soul, slaps the eyes, and seduces like the maelstrom that each one of us hides beyond the conscious. To summarize La Femme Publique is impossible, dangerous and impoverishing. Zulawski is not a man of words; he plays and juggles with the image, the color, the rhythm, the sound, the music, and this unspeakable shamelessness that he steals from his actors so effectively. Between humor and paroxysm, La Femme Publique is a fascinating metaphysical experience with a degree of intensity that needs to be seen to be believed. Simply put, it represents cinema at its most insane & brilliant.
- Special Screening & Mention @ 1984 Cannes Film Festival
AWARDS:
-Montreal World Film Festival:
Most Popular Film Of The Festival
Special Prize of the Jury
NOMINATIONS:
Cesar Awards, France
Best Actress: Valerie Kaprisky
Best Supporting Actor: Lambert Wilson
Best Writing Adaptation: Andrzej Zulawski
Best Writing Adaptation: Dominique Garnier
DVD CONTENTS:
MONDO VISION presents the first ever North American release of Andrzej Zulawski's highly anticipated and sought after film La Femme Publique (The Public Woman, 1984) in a gorgeous transfer with all new English Subtitles, UNCUT & Fully Uncensored.
- Digitally Restored Transfer Mastered In High Definition Progressive Video (Approved by Director Andrzej Zulawski)
- Feature Length Audio Commentary With Director Andrzej Zulawski And Writer Daniel Bird
- Exclusive New Video Interview With Director Andrzej Zulawski
- Theatrical Trailer
- DVD-ROM Content
- Image Gallery
- 24page Booklet Featuring a Newly Written Essay by Daniel Bird
TECHNICAL NOTES:
Le Femme Publique is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 and original Mono French soundtrack as intended by Andrzej Zulawski. This Dual Layer disc has been transferred and encoded using a high-frequency process which preserves as much of the detail and texture from the original film as is possible on the NTSC DVD format.
UPC: 837654024652
Catalog#: MVSE001
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| Customer Reviews:
 Beautiful DVD, difficult film December 28, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
La Femme Publique is a deeply strange and scary film in which the characters are constantly flipping out on each other (and themselves) - often in a very extreme way. This insanity isn't really properly explained, however, so it's almost always startling when a character starts to "lose it." Zulawski's world is one where laughter is a grotesque act and crying/suffering/humiliation a common thing. I would be hard pressed to tell you what the "point" of all this is, but I can say that the film is enjoyable in its own way as a heavily surreal, heavily downbeat character study. The cinematography is rife with sweeping camera movements and eerie Anger/Argento-esque lighting. Despite what some critics have said, Valerie Kaprisky's performance is both brave and brilliant. The plot may be close to incomprehensible, but I can't help but think that her two dance scenes express everything the audience needs to know.
Mondo Vision's DVD is nothing short of stellar, with classy packaging and a darn sharp lookin' transfer. I imagine I will revisit this film many times in the future.
La Femm Publique A new release by Mondo Vision December 9, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I watched this newly released DVD and enjoyed it tremendously. I watched it several times and learned more with each viewing. This movie does not have the routine "happily ever after" ending that many viewers like. It may even disappoint some people; however it is, in my opinion, a masterpiece by Andezej Zulawski, a Polish director. This 1984 movie was made in the era of the political unrest in Eastern Europe. In this movie a young director( Francis Huster) hires a beautiful actress( Valerie Kaprisky)to play a role in his movie. This Young actress has been trying to get on the big screen and into the film business without much success. For survival, she has been dancing nude for a photographer who exploit her. The movie is a mixture of suspense, violence, exploitation, paranoia, sex, nudity and political plots. It was based on Dastoyevsky's "The Possessed". The conclusion is left to the viewer since Zulawski leaves the ending open to your interpretation. The screenplay is written by Dominique Carnier and modified by Zulawski. It could be assumed that part of the character of the director in the film is Zulawski's own character and the story is about making a movie, similar to 8 1/2 by Fellini and the Player by Robert Altman. Viewer may need to review the movie for several times in order to appreciate Zulawski's artistry and talent. I certainly learned more each time I saw it.
It ts introduced by Mondo Vision to the Market with a very attractive packaging, a useful booklet and an interesting interview with Mr. Zulawski.
Congratulation to Mondo Vision for producing a superb art piece as their first product into the market. This version with clear English subtitles will add to Mr. Zulawski's fame. the new viewer gets a chance to know and learn about this controversial director.
A must see DVD, to learn and enjoy this masterpiece of film making. Wish the best of success for Mondo Vision and I hope to see more work from this compant.
Kosrow Nowroozi,MD
Public Woman: A Combination of Beauty and Complexity November 29, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I don't consider myself an expert when it comes to movies even though I have watched a number of films within the past few years ever since I joined Netflix. People view movies in many different ways. Some people get excited with the visual aspects. Some people really care about the way a movie is directed, the movement of the camera, and the way scenes are shot. Some care about the plot, the story, the characters, and how they relate to them. Some people understand the dark and intense emotions that are reflected through images and get fascinated with the sense of intensified chaos that those images produce regardless of the plot. Generally speaking, I find myself more drawn towards storyline, the depth of characters, and acting. That might be because psychology is my passion and human behavior truly fascinates me. I also believe that music is a crucial element that can make a world of difference in movies. When it comes to Andrzej Zulawski, I feel rather torn. I absolutely admire his passion for the way he makes his movies because that passion certainly reflects itself very authentically. When you watch his movies, it is almost difficult to dismiss how the emotional intensity of each character comes from within. To me, that speaks volumes about the person who is behind the camera and is directing his actors. It suggests that this person most probably has a deep understanding of how intensified emotions are experienced. He also chooses perfect music which multiplies the already intensified emotions and transfers those feelings to the audience. Out of all the Andrej Zulawski's movies that I have seen, Public Woman and Fidelity have been my favorite ones so far. I am a 28 year old girl so the title of the movie, "Public Woman" grabbed my attention. This movie is a story of a young girl whose dream is to become an actress. In her journey of pursuing this dream, she gets involved with a controlling, possessive, and in my opinion narcissistic director who emotionally abuses her in order to make her a star. I guess one of the reasons that I actually liked this movie despite the hysteria that comes with it, is that in a twisted, abstract way, the main character, becomes free or somehow wins at the end or gets what she works so hard for which is empowering and rewarding. The plots and characters of Zulawski's movies are so complex that it is hard to really describe with words what happens in them but in a very simplified language, I believe that relative to his other movies, public woman is one with more harmony and most importantly, a sense of closure at the end which stands out very significantly to me. I absolutely love the music; I think it is intriguing and creates this strange feeling of nostalgia; the kind that gives you real goosebumps. Last but not least, I love the PACKAGING. Even if you are not a Zulawski fan or have never heard of him before, the packaging of this movie itself is one great reason to buy it. I love the choice of colors on the cover; It looks very original and unique which is refreshing to see and I think the inside booklet with all the pictures is absolutely brilliant and is the result of real hard work.
WOW!! Zulawski's Long Overdue Classic Finally Coming To DVD! July 7, 2008
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
5 star rating is for the Film itself not the DVD as I have not seen the transfer yet. From the screen grabs circulating the web, looks to be promising. With most of his films badly bootlegged, this could be considered the first proper treatment that Zulawski has received in any region in a long time. Amazon does not have the DVD Contents listed yet, here's some info on what to expect from this release. Following details were posted on Andrzej Zulawski's forum few weeks ago, let's hope they are accurate. enjoy...
FULLY UNCUT & UNCENSORED available for the first time on DVD
in North America!
- Digitally restored high definition progressive transfer
- Feature length audio commentary with Andrzej Zulawski
- Exclusive new interview with Andrzej Zulawski
- 1984 theatrical trailer
- Image gallery
- DVD-ROM content (original screenplay and high resolution photos)
+ 24page Booklet including a newly written essay by Daniel Bird
Technical Details:
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
Audio: French Dolby Digital 2.0 Dual Mono
Brand New English Subtitles (optional)
Disc Type: dual layer
Packaging: Digipak Inside Hardcover Slipcase
For diehard Zulawski fans, There is also a 2Disc version listed on Amazon here.
Andrzej Zulawski's La Femme Publique (The Public Woman, 1984) UNCUT Premium Edition (DVD+OST CD+10 Lobby Cards+48pg Booklet) [LIMITED: 2,000 Numbered Sets] by MONDO VISION
Update: Nov 15, 08
Hey folks, just received my copy of the special edition and I'm very happy with the overall quality and the contents that come with it. It's obvious that this new label has spent a lot of time putting together this nice little package. I was very skeptical at first knowing the treatment other Zulawski films have received on DVD. This release of Public Woman, however, is an exception and is nothing compared to those terrible releases of Silver Globe, The Devil, and My Nights Are More Beautiful Than Your Days all of which are being sold here on Amazon for $29.99 with no special features, cropped aspect ratios and standard interlaced conversions. Public Woman is presented in the original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 enhanced for 16x9 TVs, not only that but the transfer is extremely film-like; a true progressive unfiltered transfer. On my 32" sharp LCD, edge enhancements are almost non-existent. The audio commentary and the interview with Zulawski are very informative; they are both in English and the interview is even subtitled in English too. The 24pg booklet is full of content and comes with a very nice essay by Daniel Bird. Before getting this DVD, I was under the impression that the packaging was one of those slim single digipaks like the one that was issued with "There Will Be Blood", BUT NO, this is as thick as any 2disc digipak and it comes with a hardcase so it won't get damaged easily especially during shipping. DVDTalk recently wrote a very nice review of this edition, you should definitely check it out before making a decision to purchase it. The transfer on this DVD alone is worth the price tag, and I can't get over the unique artwork that was inspired by the film, it really stands out in my collection, that's just my 2cents. By the way, Mondo Vision is currently working on the next Zulawski line-up which includes L'important C'est D'aimer (The Important Thing Is To Love, 1975) and L'amour Braque (Mad Love, 1985) with Sophie Marceau, both schedueled for release in 2009, no other details have been released yet.
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