Dangerous Liaisons (1988)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Stephen Frears

Writers (WGA):

Christopher Hampton (play)
Choderlos de Laclos (novel)
(more)

Release Date:

21 December 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Lust. Seduction. Revenge. The Game As You've Never Seen It Played Before.

Plot:

Rich and bored aristocrats in Rococo France play high-stakes games of passion and betrayal.

Plot Keywords:

France | Corruption | Love | Betrayal | Passion

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 12 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Glenn Close	...	Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil
John Malkovich	...	Vicomte Sébastien de Valmont
Michelle Pfeiffer	...	Madame de Tourvel
Swoosie Kurtz	...	Madame de Volanges
Keanu Reeves	...	Le Chevalier Raphael Danceny
Mildred Natwick	...	Madame de Rosemonde
Uma Thurman	...	Cécile de Volanges
Peter Capaldi	...	Azolan
Joe Sheridan	...	Georges
Valerie Gogan	...	Julie
Laura Benson	...	Emilie
Joanna Pavlis	...	Adèle
Nicholas Hawtrey	...	Major-domo
Paulo Abel Do Nascimento	...	Castrato
François Lalande	...	Curé
François Montagut	...	Belleroche
Harry Jones	...	Armand
Christian Erickson	...	Bailiff
Catherine Cauwet	...	Opera singer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Shannon Finnegan	...	(uncredited)
Patricia Kessler	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Stephen Frears

Writing credits (WGA)
Christopher Hampton		(play)
Choderlos de Laclos		(novel "Les liaisons dangereuses")
Christopher Hampton		(screenplay)

Produced by
Christopher Hampton	....	co-producer
Norma Heyman	....	producer
Hank Moonjean	....	producer

Original Music by
George Fenton

Cinematography by
Philippe Rousselot

Film Editing by
Mick Audsley

Casting by
Howard Feuer
Juliet Taylor

Production Design by
Stuart Craig

Art Direction by
Gavin Bocquet
Gérard Viard

Set Decoration by
Gérard James

Costume Design by
James Acheson

Makeup Department
Monique Huylebroeck	....	makeup artist
Peter Owen	....	wig designer
Dominique Plez	....	makeup artist
Malou Rossignol	....	hair stylist
Jean-Luc Russier	....	supervising makeup artist
Pierre Vadé	....	hair stylist
Bernard Floch	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Patrick Gordon	....	unit production manager
Suzanne Wiesenfeld	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jérôme George	....	third assistant director
Vincent Lascoumes	....	second assistant director
Bernard Seitz	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Paul Bastide	....	painter
Daniel Braunschweig	....	property master
Jean-François Cousson	....	props (as Jean François Cousson)
Jean-Michel Ducourty	....	assistant art director (as Jean Michel Ducourty)
Genevieve Fresca	....	drapery
Roger Fresca	....	drapery
André Loisif	....	construction foreman
André Marchandet	....	chief plasterer
Eve Mavrakis	....	art department assistant
Claude Périnet	....	chief painter
Félix Placenti	....	prop buyer
Claude Potier	....	chief carpenter
Patrick Torossian	....	props
Catherine Werner-Schmidt	....	prop buyer (as Catherine Werner)
Steve Clark	....	trainee: art department (uncredited)

Sound Department
Christopher Ackland	....	dialogue editor
Peter Baldock	....	assistant sound editor
Mick Boggis	....	assistant sound re-recording mixer
Martin Crane	....	assistant sound editor
Richard Dunford	....	dialogue editor
Steve Hancock	....	sound camera operator
Peter Handford	....	production sound mixer
Peter Maxwell	....	sound re-recording mixer
Michel Mellier	....	cable person
Kant Pan	....	sound editor
John Stevenson	....	boom operator
Elaine 'Chucks' Thomas	....	assistant dialogue editor (as Elaine Thomas)

Stunts
Michel Carliez	....	stunts (uncredited)
Albert Goldberg	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Stéphane Agostini	....	electrician
Jean-Pierre Baronsky	....	gaffer (as Jean Pierre Baronsky)
Philippe Barrillet	....	electrician
Jean-Luc Bezeau	....	grip
Barthelemy Bogaert	....	assistant camera
Bernard Brégier	....	key grip
Gerard Buffard	....	grip (as Gerard Buffard)
Pierre Cottereau	....	assistant camera
Alain Dondin	....	electrician
Mike Fox	....	camera operator
Etienne George	....	still photographer
Jean Pierre Pujol	....	electrician
Gérard Rival	....	grip
Gérard Sionneau	....	generator operator (as Gerard Sionneau)
Myriam Touzé	....	assistant camera

Casting Department
Leo Davis	....	casting: UK
Françoise Menidrey	....	casting: France
Jacqueline Perpere	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Isabelle Coignerai	....	costume supervisor
Brian Collins	....	costume maker
Chris Criddle	....	costume maker
Andree Demarez	....	costumer
Nathalie Doux	....	costumer
Magot Forster	....	costume maker
Frank Gardiner	....	assistant costume designer
Sylvia Grainger	....	dress decoration
Annie Hadley	....	costume maker
Janette Haslam	....	costume maker
Carole Hersee	....	costume maker
Alan Hopkins	....	dress decoration
Vanessa Hopkins	....	dress decoration
Danielle Laffargue	....	costumer
Day Murch	....	costume maker
Gwen Russell	....	costume maker
Phyllis Thorald	....	embroidery

Editorial Department
Simon Cowper	....	assistant editor
Dan Gane	....	editor trainee
Françoise Roumanet	....	assistant editor (as Francoise Roumanet)
Annabel Ware	....	assistant editor
Yvan Lucas	....	dailies timer (uncredited)

Music Department
Michael Connell	....	music editor
Keith Grant	....	music recording engineer
Jackie Krost	....	music supervisor
Gerry O'Riordan	....	assistant music engineer (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Alain Domínguez	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Martin Adams	....	jeweller
John Beharrell	....	accountant
Denise Breton	....	unit publicist
Gerald Cheshire	....	milliner
Shirley Cooper	....	jeweller
Sophie Drouin	....	production accountant
Cathy Dutheil	....	production secretary (as Catherine Hall)
Penny Eyles	....	script supervisor
Pierre Gralhon	....	location manager
William Hobbs	....	duel coordinator
Olivier Lhoste	....	location manager
Richard Liebegott	....	assistant: Hank Moonjean
Colette Martin	....	accountant
Lorraine McKee	....	milliner
Cecile Moreau	....	dyer
Pat Newcomb	....	financial representative (as Patrick Newcomb)
Caspian Owen	....	assistant: Patrick Newcomb
Jean Michel Penkhoss	....	assistant location manager
Pierre Romans	....	opera stager
Julian Rothenstein	....	title designer
Eliza Thompson	....	assistant: George Fenton
Tor Van Moyland	....	assistant: Norma Heyman
Blanche Wiesenfeld	....	production coordinator
Michel Carliez	....	duel double (uncredited)
Albert Goldberg	....	duel double (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Lorimar Film Entertainment
• NFH Productions
• Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1988) (USA) (theatrical)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1994) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Warner Bros. (1989) (France) (theatrical)
• Argentina Video Home (Argentina) (video)
• Warner Home Video (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Vídeo (1998) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Cosprop  costume makers
• Sapex Scripts  post-production script services

Runtime:

119 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | France:Unrated | Australia:M | Argentina:18 | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Peru:18 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:18 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Château de Champs-sur-Marne, Champs-sur-Marne, Seine-et-Marne, France

Company:

Lorimar Film Entertainment

Trivia:

The original Broadway production of "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" by Christopher Hampton opened at the Music Box Theater in New York on August 30, 1987, ran for 149 performances and was nominated for the 1987 Tony Award (New York City) for the Best Play.

Goofs:

Continuity: In one scene (in Mme de Rosemonde's garden), Valmont sits behind Mme de Tourvel and asks "Why are you so angry with me?" The camera then cuts to a close-up of Michelle Pfeiffer's face, and John Malkovich is sitting much closer behind her.

Quotes:

Vicomte de Valmont: Surely I've explained to you before how much I enjoy watching the battle between love and virtue.
Marquise de Merteuil: What concerns me is that you seem to enjoy watching it much more than you used to enjoy winning it.
Vicomte de Valmont: All in good time.
Marquise de Merteuil: The century is drawing to its close.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Dawson's Creek: Parental Discretion Advised (#2.22)" (1999)

Soundtrack:

O Malheureuse Iphigénie !

Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practise to deceive.

You wouldn't necessarily think that an adaptation of an albeit famous 17th century French novel would make a relevant and fascinating piece of cinema... but it does.

The first thing that strikes you is how well the film is lit and shot. The period locations and costumes are visually sumptuous and perfect. Better yet, the acting entirely matches the skill of the direction that takes its method from the theatre - emotions are conveyed by expression and not dialogue. Glenn Close gives her best performance on celluloid as the scheming Madame de Merteuil, amorally hellbent on bending everyone to her will, no matter the method or the cost, and John Malkovitch is her perfect foil as the cynical hedonistic but world-weary Valmont. Michelle Pfeiffer engages our empathy as the tortured and manipulated target of Malkovitch's desire and Close's plotting.

The film is basically a morality tale, but one that fascinates in its exposure of ego, vanity, intrigue and the war between the genders, subjects that are timeless in their relevance, despite the period setting. The storyline, which sticks faithfully to the original novel, remains compelling throughout as we watch deceits within deceits take their tragic course. Whole-heartedly recommended - take your time over it, and enjoy.