Isabelle Huppert, acclaimed French actress, who wowed critics again during the Cannes Film Festival says “No role is hard for me. It’s never hard.” Recently, she spoke at length about the new Paul Verhoeven movie, “Elle,” in which, her character, Michèle Leblanc, is strangely drawn to her attacker; leading to a heated discussion during the festival.
The third rape is the most mysterious, Huppert feels, as she gives her perspective - obviously something happens during that rape. It’s almost like a love scene. Almost! That “almost” - and the film’s unsettling mix of violence and comedy - set off a debate at the Cannes Film Festival, though “Elle” drew glowing reviews from critics.
Shown in competition, it left award-less; but is already one of its most talked-about films; bound to continue when Sony Pictures Classics releases the film in the US in November. While many critics say they expect the film to generate controversy, few have expressed discomfort with it. Instead, they have embraced its ironies. In a twist revealing of today’s gender politics, some feminist critics have praised “Elle,” while some male viewers - and some male distributors who turned it down at Cannes - have bristled at how the film has audiences laughing between violent rape scenes.
Nearly 25 years after Sharon Stone uncrossed her legs and wielded an ice pick in his “Basic Instinct,” Verhoeven had reportedly wanted to make “Elle,” his first full-length feature in a decade, in the US - only to discover that Hollywood actresses wouldn’t go near the role, major block - after Michèle unmasks her attacker, it doesn’t go in the direction of a revenge movie - an obstacle from the point of view of politically correct morality.
