Although she may be an unfamiliar name to the average American film goer, Isabelle Huppert is hardly a novice to cinema. This French legend has been making films since 1971 and is said to have appeared in at least one hundred since then.
I remember first encountering Ms Huppert in one of her infrequent English-language ventures back in 1987 with an early Curtis Hanson film, "The Bedroom Window", a psychological crime thriller which she co-starred with the odd line-up of Steve Guttenberg and Elizabeth McGovern. While it was fairly standard but entertaining, I do remember being dazzled by this exotic actress, clearly the most interesting aspect of this film as she stood out with her unusually still and definitively European performance. I have been a fan ever since and saw whatever of her native-language films that made it to the U.S. Some of my favorites include Claude Chabrol's "Story of Women" and "Madame Bovary", "8 Women", the musical from Francois Ozon, "White Material" by Claire Denis and one of her more daring roles in the erotic thriller "The Piano Teacher".
There has been a lot of attention buzzing around this iconic actress this year due to her amazing performance in Paul Verhoeven's comeback feature "Elle", another sexually-charged yet disturbing drama as well as for her appearance in the latest from Mia Hansen-Love, "Things To Come (L'Avenir").
The New York Times has done a rare, in-depth profile of the private Huppert, covering her life and career while also providing a proper introduction to America as we will be seeing her quite frequently during this award season. Oh, and the correct pronunciation of her last name is hoo-pear.
Click below to read the article:
The Enduring Allure of Isabelle Huppert
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