Death and the Maiden (1994)

Director:

Roman Polanski

Writers (WGA):

Ariel Dorfman (play)
Rafael Yglesias (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

3 March 1995 (Spain)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Prepare yourself for the moment of truth.

Plot:

A political activist is convinced that her guest is a man who once tortured her for the government.

Plot Keywords:

Sex | Closed Society | Self Justice | Rape Confession | Trial

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Sigourney Weaver	...	Paulina Escobar
Ben Kingsley	...	Dr. Roberto Miranda
Stuart Wilson	...	Gerardo Escobar
Krystia Mova	...	Dr. Miranda's Wife
Jonathan Vega	...	Dr. Miranda's Son
Rodolphe Vega	...	Dr. Miranda's Son
Gilberto Cortés	...	String Quartet Player (as Gilberto Cortes)
Jorge Cruz	...	String Quartet Player
Carlos Moreno	...	String Quartet Player
Eduardo Valenzuela	...	String Quartet Player
Sergio Ortega Alvarado	...	String Quartet Manager

Also Known As:

La jeune fille et la mort (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language including descriptions of violent situations.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

UK | USA | France

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Brazil:12 | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | UK:18 | South Korea:18 | New Zealand:R18 | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Australia:R | Finland:K-16 | Germany:12 (bw) | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Chile

Company:

Canal+

Trivia:

This film was shot entirely in exact chronological order, except for the last scene which takes place at dawn. Roman Polanski chose to shoot at sunset because lighting for the set was better, so he shot the sequence backwards (i.e. last scene when the sun comes up, was shot first as the sun was actually going down, etc.)

Goofs:

Continuity: At the beginning Paulina is cooking something in a pan over the fire, then, for dinner she produces only a roasted chicken and green salad. So what was she cooking in the pan?

Quotes:

Dr. Roberto Miranda: How can I confess to something I haven't done?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Psych: 65 Million Years Off (#2.2)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

SCHUBERT STRING QUARTET IN D MINOR

Unbearable situation

Rarely does a film with only three actors create such unbearable tension and cover political aspects too. Also, the film has great actors: Ben Kingsley gives the impression that he himself didn't know whether his character was guilty or not; Stuart Wilson is a typical confused lawyer-husband; and Sigourney Weaver probably gives her best performance – of course, she's got a good role.

I enjoy stories, where people get in situations so terrible and unnatural that they are unable to see their extent. They cannot think clearly and so their thinking structure changes and they begin to take completely absurd things into consideration. Every person reacts a little differently to the situation. I love this, and that's why I give this movie the best rating. I couldn't find any flaws in the movie, actually.