The French Lieutenant's Woman Poster

The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)

R 08/28/1981 Drama, Romance, History 2h 4m
64%
User
Score
6.9/10
83%
64/100

She was lost from the moment she saw him.

Overview

In this story-within-a-story, Anna is an actress starring opposite Mike in a period piece about the forbidden love between their respective characters, Sarah and Charles. Both actors are involved in serious relationships, but the passionate nature of the script leads to an off-camera love affair as well. While attempting to maintain their composure and professionalism, Anna and Mike struggle to come to terms with their infidelity.

Karel Reisz

Director

Harold Pinter

Screenplay

Top Billed Cast

Meryl Streep

Meryl Streep

Sarah / Anna

Jeremy Irons

Jeremy Irons

Charles Henry Smithson / Mike

Hilton McRae

Hilton McRae

Sam

Lynsey Baxter

Lynsey Baxter

Ernestina

Emily Morgan

Emily Morgan

Mary

Penelope Wilton

Penelope Wilton

Sonia

Jean Faulds

Jean Faulds

Cook

Charlotte Mitchell

Charlotte Mitchell

Mrs. Tranter

Peter Vaughan

Peter Vaughan

Mr. Freeman

Full Cast & Crew →

Media

The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981) Original Trailer [FHD]

The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981) Original Trailer [FHD]

Carl Davis on Composing the Theme for THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT’S WOMAN

Carl Davis on Composing the Theme for THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT’S WOMAN

Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons on THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT'S WOMAN

Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons on THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT'S WOMAN

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Poster Poster
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Reviews

A review by CinemaSerf

Written on January 17, 2025

Usually if there are two separate timelines featured in a story, the director tries to ensure that we cannot readily distinguish between one that might be true and one that might be artificial. It's the complete opposite that really works well here as we mingle the story of an 18th century woman living within the constraints of high Victorian society with a more profligate 1970s one. To fit out the earlier scenario, we meet the shy "Sarah" (Meryl Streep) who is rebounding from a liaison with the titular French lieutenant by having an even less suitable assignation with the altogether more decent "Charles" (Jeremy Irons). The modern day scenario has the same two actors playing "Anna" and "Mike", only both are married to others and they are the "real" life actors portraying these other chara...

Read the full review on TMDb →
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