Mistress = Maitresse (D)

Olivier (Gerard Depardieau), a petty thief who breaks into the flat of a young woman, Ariane, is startled to discover she is a dominatrix operating a lair devoted to sado-masochistic practices for an array of wealthy clients. Despite his bewilderment, Ariane and Olivier embark upon a tumultuous affair, complicated by her occupation, in which Olivier is occasionally involved. Perplexed and deeply in love, Olivier yearns to dissuade Ariane from her chosen life, the particulars of which fuel his burgeoning distrust of her. At times the film is blackly comic and wryly amusing, but it also contains some quite graphic scenes of sexual torture and a disconcerting depiction of a horse slaughter at an abattoir. Non-judgemental about Ariane and her clients’ desires, Barbet Schroeder (Reversal of fortune, Single white female, Barfly) examines love, lust, gender and bourgeois morality within the context of an unusual pairing of two people who seek to be together, despite their disparities. Warning: some scenes of sadistic and masochistic sex acts and violence may disturb some viewers. Costumes designed by Karl Lagerfeld. In French with English subtitles.