A young woman from a farm near Roen in France marries her local physician. A glimpse of high society living is experienced by Emma when they are invited to a ball. She cherishes this evening, remembering it as the best time of her life. The memory fades quickly however, and reality doesn’t match her high expectations of living. Growing tired of her inattentive husband and her burdensome child, she tries to push her drab life aside, looking elsewhere for love, excitement and a risque liaison. Secretly she carries out her double life, her debt increasing to keep her high living alive. She gives her all, but in return she’s not given enough. Cast includes Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Francois Balmer, Christophe Malavoy and Jean Yanne. Based on the well known novel by Gustave Flaubert.
Content notification
Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.
Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.
How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
316956
Languages
English
French
French
Audience classification
PG
Subject categories
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Foreign language films
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Motion picture trailers
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Motion pictures - Excerpts
Family, Gender Identity, Relationships & Sexuality → Adultery
Family, Gender Identity, Relationships & Sexuality → Seduction
Feature films → Feature films - France
Food, Health, Lifestyle, Medicine, Psychology & Safety → Marriage
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
DVD; Access Print (Section 1)