Anouk Aimée


Actor
Anouk Aimée

About

Also Known As
Francoise Sorya Dreyfus
Birth Place
Paris, FR
Born
April 27, 1932

Biography

Though she never achieved the enduring international popularity of her contemporaries Brigitte Bardot and Catherine Deneuve, actress Anouk Aimée nonetheless forged a steady screen career and remained a strong presence in a number of European-based productions. Both sultry and enigmatic, Aimée appeared in a string of melodramas throughout the 1950s until finally breaking into Hollywood wi...

Family & Companions

Trevor Howard
Companion
Actor. Had affair in 1950.
Trevor Howard
Companion
Mother, Prudence Balchin; predeceased father in a road accident.
Nico Papatakis
Husband
Appeared on "The Real World: Hawaii".
Nico Papatakis
Husband
Director, producer, restaurateur. First husband; divorced.

Biography

Though she never achieved the enduring international popularity of her contemporaries Brigitte Bardot and Catherine Deneuve, actress Anouk Aimée nonetheless forged a steady screen career and remained a strong presence in a number of European-based productions. Both sultry and enigmatic, Aimée appeared in a string of melodramas throughout the 1950s until finally breaking into Hollywood with a supporting part in "The Journey" (1959). But it was a turn as a bored nymphomaniac in Federico Fellini's "La Dolce Vita" (1960) that made international audiences sit up and take notice. Following another solid performance as a long-suffering wife in Fellini's "8 1/2" (1963), she earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for "A Man and a Woman" (1966), an international hit and one of the most romantic movies ever made. Even though she gained worldwide prominence from the role, Aimée was unable to turn into a true international star. She had a solid turn in "The Model Shop" (1969), but did little of note during the 1970s and 1980s, though she maintained a steady stream of work. Aimée even tried to return to fertile ground with "A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later" (1986), but that did little to boost her profile. After a brief reemergence on the world stage in Robert Altman's "Prêt-à-Porter/Ready to Wear" (1994). Aimée settled into a number of supporting roles in European-made films and television miniseries, yet never once lost the allure she had displayed so vividly in her 1960s heyday.

Born Francoise Sorya Dreyfus on April 27, 1932 in Paris, France, Aimée was raised by her actor parents, Henri Murray and Geneviève Sorya, and studied acting and dancing in her native country and England before making her film debut at age 14 in "La Maison sous la mer" (1946). She adopted her stage name, Anouk, from the character she played in the film, and soon gained notice in a Juliet-like role for Andre Cayatte's "Les Amants de Verone" ("Lovers of Verona") (1948), in which she played the daughter of a disgraced nobleman who falls for the poor son (Serge Reggiani) of a glassblower. Aimée went on to a string of starring roles for films made in Italy, Great Britain, West Germany and her native France, including the romantic adventure, "The Golden Salamander" (1950), which sparked a brief romance with co-star Trevor Howard. From there, she starred in Alexandre Astruc's comedy "Le Rideau Cramoisi" (1951), the Paul Grimault fantasy "Le Bergere et le Ramoneur" (1952), Herni Decoin's crime drama "Tous Peuvent Me Tuer" (1957) and Jacques Becker's romantic melodrama "Montparnasse 19" (1958).

Following a turn in Georges Franju's psychological drama "La Tête Contre les Murs" (1958), Aimée made her Hollywood debut as a freedom fighter in Anatole Litvak's political romance "The Journey" (1959), which starred Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr. But it was her performance as a bored socialite in search of sexual adventure in Federico Fellini's triumphant "La Dolce Vita" (1960) that earned her considerable international attention and established her as a formidable screen talent. Aimée followed up by playing an enchanting cabaret dancer and single mother in Jacques Demy's "Lola" (1961) and the wicked Queen Bera in Robert Aldrich's biblical epic "Sodom and Gomorrah" (1962). She delivered another milestone performance as the long-suffering wife of an Italian director (Marcello Mastroianni) dealing with creative block, haranguing producers and losing his grip on reality in Federico Fellini's masterpiece, "8 1/2" (1963). From there, she appeared in a number of forgotten films like "Le Voci Bianche" (1965) and "Le Stagioni del Nostro Amore" (1966) before making the film that would go on to define the rest of her career.

Aimée delivered her finest performance in Claude Lelouch's wildly romantic drama "A Man and A Woman" (1966), in which she played a widow who falls in love with a widower (Jean-Louis Trintignant), but is unable to shake her past. Her exquisite performance earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, while the film itself earned Oscars for Best Foreign Film and Best Original Screenplay. After starring in André Delvaux's psychological drama, "Un Soir.un Train" (1968), Aimée reunited with Demy for another important role, playing an older French model who attracts the attention of a disillusioned 26-year-old (Gary Lockwood) in "The Model Shop" (1969). Director George Cukor next cast the actress for the title role of "Justine" (1969), a period drama based on the famous Lawrence Durrell novels The Alexandria Quartet, about French expatriates in North Africa. Meanwhile, Aimée continued making European films during the 1970s like "If I Had to Do It All Over Again" (1976), "Mon premier amour" (1978) and the psychological drama "Salto nel Vuoto" (1979), but nothing that cracked the international mainstream like "A Man and a Woman." Still, she took Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival for her role in "Le Saut dans le vide" (1980).

Despite her continued starring roles and supporting appearances, Aimée was unable to duplicate the worldwide visibility she had garnered in the late-1960s, even when she recreated her acclaimed role in Lelouch's sequel "A Man and A Woman: 20 Years Later" (1986). But that, too, failed to reignite old flames. Following an appearance in "Bethune: The Making of a Hero" (1989), starring Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren, she reemerged onto the scene thanks to Robert Altman, who cast her alongside Danny Aiello, Sophia Loren, Kim Basinger, Julia Roberts and Marcello Mastroianni for the director's rather lifeless exposé of the fashion world, "Prêt-à-Porter/Ready to Wear" (1994). Aimée settled down a bit, appearing less often on screen during the late-1990s, though she was seen in the comedy "A Hundred and One Nights" (1995) and the romantic comedy "L.A. Without a Map" (1998), starring Julie Delpy. On the small screen, she played Bathsheba in the miniseries "Solomon" (ION, 2000) and Letizia Bonaparte to Christian Clavier's "Napoleon" (A&E, 2002). Back in features, she had supporting parts in "Happily Ever After" (2005), "De Particulier a Partticulier" (2006), and "Tous les Soleils" (2011).

By Shawn Dwyer

Filmography

 

Cast (Feature Film)

Mince Alors! (2012)
Tous les soleils (2011)
What Love May Bring (2011)
Two in the Wave (2010)
Herself
Noi che abbiamo fatto 'La Dolce Vita' (2009)
De Particulier A Particulier (2006)
Marcello: A Sweet Life (2006)
Happily Ever After (2004)
Une pour toutes (2000)
L.A. Without a Map (1999)
Herself
1999 Madeleine (1999)
Festival in Cannes (1999)
Les Menteurs (1996)
Hommes, femmes: mode d'emploi (1996)
The Universe of Jacques Demy (1995)
Herself
One Hundred and One Nights (1995)
Say Yes (1995)
Ready to Wear (1994)
Simone Lowenthal--Designer And Olivier'S Lover
Montparnasse 19 (1993)
Jeanne
There Were Days and Moons (1990)
Dr. Bethune (1990)
Marie-France Coudaire
La Table tournante (1988)
Arrivederci e Grazie (1988)
A Man and a Woman: 20 Years Later (1986)
Success Is the Best Revenge (1984)
Monique Defontaine
Viva la Vie! (1984)
Le General de l'Armee Morte (1983)
Countess Betsy
Tragedy of A Ridiculous Man (1982)
Qu'est-ce qui fait courir David? (1982)
Salto Nel Vuoto (1980)
Marta
Mon premier amour (1978)
Jane
If You Had To Do It All Over Again (1976)
L' Imprevu (1961)
The Chasers (1959)
Jeanne
The Keepers (1958)
Stephanie
House of Lovers (1957)
Marie Pichon
The Bad Liaisons (1955)
Contraband Spain (1955)
The Golden Salamander (1949)

Misc. Crew (Feature Film)

L.A. Without a Map (1999)
Other
The Universe of Jacques Demy (1995)
Other

Cast (Special)

Haute Couture: The Great Designers (1987)
Forever My Heart (1954)

Cast (TV Mini-Series)

Napoleon (2002)
Solomon (2000)

Life Events

1946

Film acting debut in "La maison sous la mer"

1949

English language debut, "The Golden Salamander", the first of a number of British films Aimee made through the 1950s

1959

First United States film, "The Journey"

1966

Received an Oscar nomination as Best Actress for her leading role in the French-made international hit, "Un homme et une femme/A Man and a Woman", directed by Claude Lelouch

1969

Last American film for a quarter century, "Justine", directed by George Cukor

1976

Reunited with Claude Lelouch on "Si c'etait a refaire"

1980

Acted in "Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man", directed by Bernardo Bertolucci

1986

Reprised best known role in Lelouch's "Un homme et une femme, 20 ans deja"

1987

Appeared as herself in the documentary, "Haute Couture: The Great Designers", an exploration into the world of high fashion which aired on PBS stations in the USA

1994

Acted in "Les Marmottes"

1994

Returned to US films to act in Robert Altman's "Ready to Wear (Pret-a-Porter)"

1998

Co-starred in "Los Angeles Without a Map"

Videos

Movie Clip

Journey, The (1959) -- (Movie Clip) You Think I'm The Devil! Yul Brynner is Surov, Russian commander of a Hungarian town during the 1956 uprising, holding forth with temporarily detained guests, journalist Robert Morley, American mom Anne Jackson, Deborah Kerr as a socialite whom we know is helping a dissident escape, then with Anouk Aimee, secret leader of a rebel band, in Anatole Litvak’s The Journey, 1959.
Model Shop (1969) -- (Movie Clip) The White Mercury George (Gary Lockwood) visiting L-A parking lot attendant buddy Rob (Craig Littler) then follows a girl in a white Mercury (Anouk Aimee) to Sunset Boulevard and beyond, in Jacques Demy's Model Shop, 1969.
Model Shop (1969) -- (Movie Clip) The Bed Or The Armchair? George (Gary Lockwood) rents a Brownie and photographs Lola (Anouk Aimee) whom he's been following all day in Jacques Demy's Model Shop, 1969, the trans-Atlantic sequel to Demy's Lola, 1962.
Chandler (1971) -- (Movie Clip) About The Same Size Private eye Warren Oates (title character) visits movie veterans Richard Loo (as pawn-broker "Leo") and Gloria Grahame (as "Selma"), wife of an ex-partner, preparing for a job in Chandler, 1971, related only by allusion to the famous writer Raymond.
Appointment, The (1969) -- (Movie Clip) It Was A Pleasure Lawyer Federico (Omar Sharif) meets effusive old pal Renzo (Gausto Totti) for lunch and is surprised to discover the girl he noticed on the street the previous day is Carla (Anouk Aimee), his fianee`, in Sidney Lumet's The Appointment, 1969.
Man And A Woman, A (1966) -- (Movie Clip) I've Got A Good Cover Their second time together, after a long sequence from his work as a test driver, Jean-Louis (Trintignant) fantasizes a little for widowed Anne (Anouk Aimee), en route to their children's boarding school, in Claude Lelouch's A Man And A Woman, 1966.
Man And A Woman, A (1966) -- (Movie Clip) I DIdn't Know He Was Dead Jean-Louis (Trintignant) has just met Anne (Anouk Aimee), offering her a ride home from their children's boarding school outside Paris, with shock editing from producer, writer, cameraman and director Claude Lelouch, early in A Man And A Woman, 1966.
Appointment, The (1969) -- (Movie Clip) It's A Mistake Joining midway through director Sidney Lumet's credit sequence, Roman lawyer Federico (Omar Sharif) has narrated his introduction, visits with his mother (Paola Barbara), and notices a pretty girl (Anouk Aimee) in the street, in The Appointment, 1969.
Man And A Woman, A (1966) -- (Movie Clip) To The Golf Course An informal opening, Anouk Aimee (as "Anne") with her daughter (Souad Amidou) and Jean-Louis (Trintingnant) with his son (Antoine Sire), just traces of Francis Lai's theme, from director Claude Lelouch's international sensation, A Man And A Woman, 1966.
Chandler (1971) -- (Movie Clip) How About Lunch? Warren Oates (in the title role) and Leslie Caron (as Katherine, the French painter he's hired to protect) killing time on a train in Chandler, 1971.
Chandler (1971) -- (Movie Clip) Got A Job For You Title character (NOT associated with the writer Raymond) Warren Oates receives crime movie veteran Charles McGraw (as "Bernie") who has an offer, in an early scene from Chandler, 1971.
Chandler (1971) -- (Movie Clip) Open, Where's Your Hat? Opening sequence in which the title character (Warren Oates) heroically quits his security-guard job, from Chandler, 1971, co-starring Leslie Caron, with Charles McGraw and Gloria Grahame.

Promo

Family

Genevieve Sorya
Mother
Immigrants to USA.
Genevieve Sorya
Mother
Actor.
Manuela Papatakis
Daughter
Has three; Hofmann is second oldest.
Manuela Papatakis
Daughter
Born 1952.

Companions

Trevor Howard
Companion
Actor. Had affair in 1950.
Trevor Howard
Companion
Mother, Prudence Balchin; predeceased father in a road accident.
Nico Papatakis
Husband
Appeared on "The Real World: Hawaii".
Nico Papatakis
Husband
Director, producer, restaurateur. First husband; divorced.
Pierre Barou
Husband
Had five additional; Hope was the fifth of six boys.
Pierre Barou
Husband
Composer. Third husband; married August 1967; divorced 1970.
Albert Finney
Husband
Actor.
Albert Finney
Husband
Actor. Fourth husband; married August 8, 1970; divorced in 1976.

Bibliography