Madame de Maintenon rose through the social hierarchy and became the secret wife of Louis XIV. At the end of the 17th century, thanks to her influence with the king, she managed to found a school for girls from impoverished noble families with the aim of promoting their freedom. Things start to go wrong, when the young Anne and Lucie use their newfound education to question Maintenon, forcing her to impose new methods. An intimate and ironic period film that reflects on France at the end of the 17th century and evokes the difficulties of women in that society, with Isabelle Huppert as the protagonist in the role of a woman tormented by complex moral, religious and emotional doubts.
- Duration: 119’
- Production year: 2000
- Country: FR, BE, DE
- Language: FR Subtitles: PT
Cannes Film Festival 2000 – Official Selection – Un Certain Regard, Award of the Youth
