Bilitis (film)

Last updated
Bilitis
Bilitis1977Poster.jpg
Directed by David Hamilton
Written byRobert Boussinot
Catherine Breillat
Jacques Nahum
Pierre Louÿs (poem cycle)
Produced by Sylvio Tabet
Malcolm J. Thomson
Starring Patti D'Arbanville
Music by Francis Lai
Release date
  • 16 March 1977 (1977-03-16)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench

Bilitis is a 1977 French romantic and erotic drama film, directed by photographer David Hamilton, with a music score by Francis Lai. It stars Patti D'Arbanville and Mona Kristensen as the title character Bilitis and Melissa, respectively.

Contents

The film is loosely based on a poem cycle by Pierre Louÿs entitled The Songs of Bilitis set in ancient Greece, although the film is set in modern Europe. The poems were meant to be autobiographical works by the title character. [1]

Synopsis

Bilitis, a teenage schoolgirl, spends the summer with her aunt Melissa and her unfaithful husband Pierre, a couple whose marriage is strained, and develops a lesbian crush on Melissa. Meanwhile, she pursues Lucas, a local teenage boy, and tries to find a "suitable male lover" for Melissa. [2]

Bilitis' sexual adventure eventually led to an unhappy result, and she decided to return to school alone.

Cast

Production

The film was shot in the same soft focus style that was characteristic of David Hamilton's photography and his other films.

Companion book

In 1977, Hamilton released a photobook, Bilitis, which included the most memorable images from the film.

Soundtrack charts

Chart (1978)Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [3] 60

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Johnson</span> American actor and singer (born 1949)

Donnie Wayne Johnson is an American actor, producer and singer. He played the role of James "Sonny" Crockett in the 1980s television series Miami Vice, for which he won a Golden Globe, and received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for his work in the role. He also played the titular character in the 1990s series Nash Bridges. Johnson received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Hamilton (photographer)</span> British photographer and film director (1933–2016)

David Hamilton was a British photographer and film director best known for his photography of young women and girls, mostly in the nude. His signature soft focus style was called the "Hamilton Blur", which was erroneously thought to be achieved by smearing Vaseline on the lens of his camera. Hamilton's images became part of an "art or pornography" debate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carole Bayer Sager</span> American lyricist, singer, songwriter, and painter (born 1944)

Carole Bayer Sager is an American lyricist, singer, songwriter, and painter.

Cheryl Lau Sang, known professionally as Samantha Sang, is an Australian singer. She had an earlier career as a teenage singer under the stage name Cheryl Gray, before adopting the stage name she is more widely known as in 1969. She first received nationwide recognition in Australia in 1967, after releasing the top ten single "You Made Me What I Am".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierre Louÿs</span> French writer and poet (1870–1925)

Pierre-Félix Louÿs was a French poet and writer, most renowned for lesbian and classical themes in some of his writings. He is known as a writer who sought to "express pagan sensuality with stylistic perfection". He was made first a Chevalier and then an Officer of the Légion d'honneur for his contributions to French literature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Balthus</span> French painter

Balthasar Klossowskide Rola, known as Balthus, was a Polish-French modern artist. He is known for his erotically charged images of pubescent girls, but also for the refined, dreamlike quality of his imagery.

<i>Mona Bone Jakon</i> 1970 studio album by Cat Stevens

Mona Bone Jakon is the third studio album by singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, released in April 1970 on the Island Records label in the United Kingdom and on A&M in the United States and Canada.

Bilitis can refer to:

<i>The Songs of Bilitis</i> Collection of French erotic lesbian poetry in the manner of Sappho by Pierre Louÿs, 1894.

The Songs of Bilitis is a collection of erotic, essentially lesbian, poetry by Pierre Louÿs published in Paris in 1894. Since Louÿs claimed that he had translated the original poetry from Ancient Greek, this work is considered a pseudotranslation. The poems were actually clever fabulations, authored by Louÿs himself, and are still considered important literature.

Voyage(s) or The Voyage may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patti D'Arbanville</span> American actress

Patricia D'Arbanville is an American actress known for her appearance in Andy Warhol projects.

<i>The Boys Next Door</i> (1985 film) 1985 American film directed by Penelope Spheeris

The Boys Next Door is a 1985 American adventure-crime drama film about two teenage boys who leave their small town home on the day of their high school graduation and embark on a crime and murder spree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Attitude (song)</span> 1984 single by Patti LaBelle

"New Attitude" is a song by American singer Patti LaBelle. It was written by Sharon Robinson, Jon Gilutin, and Bunny Hull and recorded by LaBelle for the motion picture soundtrack album to the 1984 action comedy film Beverly Hills Cop, while production was helmed by Rick Chudacoff, Howie Rice, and Peter Burnetta. Released as a single in December 1984, it helped launching LaBelle's solo career as a pop music singer after the singer had spent seven years without a crossover pop hit following the break-up of her band Labelle.

<i>Sabrina Down Under</i> 1999 television film by Kenneth R. Koch

Sabrina Down Under is a 1999 American television film produced for ABC, airing on September 26, 1999. It is a sequel to Sabrina Goes to Rome and is a companion to the Sabrina the Teenage Witch television series.

<i>Call Me</i> (film) 1988 erotic thriller film

Call Me is a 1988 American erotic thriller film about a woman who strikes up a relationship with a stranger over the phone, and in the process becomes entangled in a murder. The film was directed by Sollace Mitchell, and stars Patricia Charbonneau, Stephen McHattie, and Boyd Gaines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lady D'Arbanville</span> 1970 single by Cat Stevens

"Lady D'Arbanville" is a song written and recorded by Cat Stevens and released in April 1970. It subsequently appeared on his third album, Mona Bone Jakon, released later that year. It was his first single released after signing a contract with Island Records, with the encouragement of his new producer, Paul Samwell-Smith, fostering a folk rock direction. "Lady D'Arbanville" has a madrigal sound, and was written about Stevens' former girlfriend, Patti D'Arbanville, metaphorically laying her to rest.

<i>The Female</i> (1959 film) 1959 French film

The Female, released in the United Kingdom as A Woman Like Satan, is a 1959 French-Italian drama film directed by Julien Duvivier. It is the fourth film adaptation of the novel La Femme et le pantin by Pierre Louÿs.

Gilles Kohler is a French actor, born November 18, 1948

Till Death Do Us Part (<i>Pretty Little Liars</i>) 20th episode of the 7th season of Pretty Little Liars

"Till Death Do Us Part" is the series finale of Pretty Little Liars, which premiered on the Freeform network in the United States on June 27, 2017. The twentieth episode of the seventh season and the 160th overall, it was directed by showrunner I. Marlene King, who also co-wrote the episode alongside Kyle Bown and Maya Goldsmith. Shortly after the two-hour final episode, a special titled "A-List Wrap Party" was aired, in which the main cast and King talked about the show's end and behind-the-scenes exclusives.

<i>Highway One</i> (film) 1977 Australian film

Highway One is a 1977 Australian documentary film by Steve Otton, which features Trudie Adams.

References

  1. Louÿs' work is credited in the film and soundtrack album and the book about the film.
  2. "Bilitis (1977)". Film Fanatic. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
  3. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 172. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.