CATHERINE DENEUVE Image Gallery - Biography - Filmography - Poster Gallery Catherine Deneuve (born 22 October 1943) is an iconic French actress known for playing cool blondes with hidden depths in the work of some of Europe’s greatest directors. Her legendary beauty and classical elegance have made her famous throughout the world where she is as well known for her promotion of perfume and fashion as she is for her acting.   see also articles on: Top 10 Films by Actor Performance || French New Wave History || French New Wave Film Guide || French New Wave Fashion

actress Catherine Deneuve

Catherine Deneuve was born Catherine Fabienne Dorléac in Paris, the third of four daughters to French stage and screen actor Maurice Dorléac and actress Renée Deneuve. Unlike her extroverted sister, Francoise, who was one year older, Catherine was more interested in art and design than acting, however her stunning beauty and family legacy made a career in the spotlight seem inevitable.

She made her screen debut as Francoise’s sister in Les Portes Claquent (1960). The experience however did little to encourage her to continue acting. Soon after she began a romance with Svengali director Roger Vadim and left her close-knit family home to move in with him. It was Vadim who persuaded her to dye her naturally brown hair to blonde and thus helped define her image as a blonde goddess. He directed her in the disappointing La Vice et la Vertu in which she gave a rather flat performance, still uncertain of her acting ability.

At the age of 19 she found herself pregnant with Vadim’s child. Just a month after giving birth to their son, Christian, in 1963, their relationship ended, leaving her alone to face the daunting task of bringing up the child alone. Ironically, real life now began to resemble art as she was cast in Jacques Demy’s Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, 1964) in which she portrays a young girl who enters a loveless marriage with a rich man, after she is left pregnant and alone when her boyfriend is sent off to war. The experience of being able to use her own life as the basis for a performance and of staring in such an innovative and well-received film encouraged Deneuve to devote herself to acting with a renewed sense of passion she hadn’t felt before.

Her performance in Les Parapluies de Cherbourg brought her to the attention of some of Europe’s most acclaimed directors leading to two of her most iconic roles. In Roman Polanski’s Repulsion (1965), she played a sexually-repressed paranoid schizophrenic whose descent into madness results in her becoming a murderer. In Luis Bunuel’s Belle de Jour (1967) she is a bored housewife who turns to prostitution as a way of living out her fantasies. This last film not only confirmed her as a major movie star but as a fashion icon too, becoming the muse for legendary designer Yves Saint Laurent, who was inspired by Deneuve after creating her wardrobe for the film.

She worked again with Demy on the lighthearted musical Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (The Young Girls of Rochefort, 1967) opposite her sister Francois Dorleac. Tragically Francois died in a car accident soon after at the age of 25. The sisters were very close and Deneuve was devastated. Despite this terrible loss - and perhaps because of it - Catherine threw herself into her work with more energy than ever. Her films from this period included Mayerling (1968) opposite Omar Sharif, April Fools (1969) opposite Jack Lemon, and La Sirene du Mississippi (Mississippi Mermaid, 1969) directed by Francois Truffaut.

In 1970 she teemed up with Bunuel again for Tristana (1970). Here again she played the innocent beauty exploited by a lecherous older man, however this time her character achieves independence and eventually exacts revenge on the man who has exploited her. The film received unanimously good reviews from the critics and an Academy Award nomination for “Best Foreign Language Film.”

While her film career went from strength to strength, Deneuve struggled to replicate this success in her private life. In 1965 she married “swinging London” photographer David Bailey. Both had affairs however and they separated in 1970, divorcing two years later. By then Deneuve had already begun a relationship with Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni. In 1972 she gave birth to a daughter by him who they named Chiara. They eventually split up in 1975, although the two remained friends until his death in 1996.

In America in the 1970s, Deneuve became famous as the face of Chanel No.5. The American press were so captivated by her charm, they nominated her as the world’s most elegant woman. Despite this her appearances in Hollywood movies were rare and mostly undistinguished. In 1969 she had starred with Jack Lemon in the comedy The April Fools and in 1975 she returned to act opposite Burt Reynolds in the crime drama Hustle. Though in both cases reviews were decent, neither made much impression at the box office.

In 1980, she worked again with Truffaut on the Second World War drama Le Dernier Metro (The Last Metro, 1980) for which she won a Cesar award for best actress. She returned to Hollywood for The Hunger, co-starring with David Bowie as a stylish vampire couple living in Manhattan on the hunt for new blood. Despite poor reviews, the film developed a cult following, not least for the erotic love scenes between Deneuve and Susan Sarandon.

In the early 1990s, Deneuve garnered further international acclaim for her performances in several films, including 1992's Indochine (for which she won another César Award for Best Actress, and an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress); and André Téchiné's two films, Ma saison préférée (1993) and Les Voleurs (1995).

In 1996, Deneuve paid homage to the director that brought her to stardom by appearing in the documentary L'Univers de Jacques Demy. In 1998, she won further acclaim for her performance in Place Vendôme. At the end of the decade, despite being past the age when most Hollywood actresses are semi-retired, Deneuve continued to work steadily, appearing in five films in 1999 alone: Est-Ouest (East-West), Le Temps retrouvé (Time Regained), Pola X, Belle-maman (Beautiful Mother), and Le Vent de la nuit (The Wind of the Night).

In 2000, Deneuve featured in the cast of Lars von Trier's musical drama Dancer in the Dark (2000) alongside Icelandic singer Björk. The film was selected for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and received alot of press attention for its controversial subject matter. In 2002, she shared the Silver Bear Award for Best Ensemble Cast at the Berlin International Film Festival for her performance in 8 Women.

In 2005, Deneuve published her diary A l'ombre de moi-meme ("In My Own Shadow", published in English as Close Up and Personal: The Private Diaries of Catherine Deneuve); in it she writes about her experiences working with Truffaut and Bunuel and shooting the films Indochine and Dancer in the Dark. In 2006, she headed the jury at the Venice Film Festival.

Deneuve continues to work steadily making at least two or three films per year. She has been criticised for a lack of ambition in many of her film choices, however, despite this, she is a revered figure in France where her image was used to represent Marianne, the country’s national symbol.

AS ACTOR (title, followed by role): [with New Wave Directors] [Complete Filmography] with New Wave Directors Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg) (1964)... Genevieve Emery (d. Jacques Demy) Repulsion (1965) ... Carole Ledoux (d. Roman Polanski) Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (The Young Girls of Rochefort) (1967) ... Delphine Garnier (d. Jacques Demy) La Sirène du Mississippi (Mississippi Mermaid) (1969) ... Julie Roussel/Marion Vergano (d. Francois Truffaut) Peau d'Âne (Donkey Skin) (1970) ... La princesse/Peau d'âne (d. Jacques Demy) Un Flic (A Cop) (1972) ... Cathy (d. Jean-Pierre Melville) L'Evènement le plus important depuis que l'homme a marché sur la lune (A Slightly Pregnant Man) (1973) ... Irène de Fontenoy (d. Jacques Demy) Le Dernier métro (The Last Metro) (1980) ... Marion Steiner (d. Francois Truffaut)   Complete Filmography Les Collégiennes (1957) ... credited as Catherine Dorléac L'Homme à femmes (1960) ... Catherine Les Portes claquent (1960) ... Dany Et satan conduit le bal (1962) ... Manuelle Les Parisiennes (1962) ... Sophie Dossier 1413 (1962) ... uncredited Le Vice et la vertu (1963) ... Justine Morand Vacances portugaises (1963) ... Catherine La Costanza della ragione (1964) ... Lori Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (1964) ... Geneviève Emery Les plus belles escroqueries du monde (1964) ... Swindler (Segment: "L'homme qui vendit la Tour Eiffel") La Chasse à l'homme (1964) ... Denise Un monsieur de compagnie (1964)) ... Isabelle Repulsion (1965) ... Carole Ledoux Les Petits chats ... uncredited Das Liebeskarussell (1965) ... Angela Claasen La Chant du monde (1965) ... Clara La Vie de château (1966) ... Marie Les Créatures (1966) ... Mylène Les Demoiselles de Rochefort (1967) ... Delphine Garnier Belle de jour (1967) ... Séverine Serizy a.k.a. Belle de Jour Benjamin (1968) ... Anne Manon 70 (1968) ... Manon Mayerling (1968) ... Maria Vetsera La Chamade (1968) ... Lucile The April Fools (1969) ... Catherine Gunther La Sirène du Mississippi (1969) ... Julie Roussel/Marion Vergano Tout peut arriver (1969) ... Interviewee Tristana (1970) ... Tristana Peau d'Âne (1970) ... La princesse/Peau d'âne Ca n'arrive qu'aux autres (1971) Catherine Liza (1972)... Liza Un flic (1972) ... Cathy L'Evènement le plus important depuis que l'homme a marché sur la lune (1973) ... Irène de Fontenoy Touche pas à la femme blanche (1974) ... Marie-Hélène de Boismonfrais Fatti di gente perbene (1974) ... Linda Murri La Femme aux bottes rouges (1974) ... Françoise LeRoi Zig zig (1975) ... Marie L'Agression (1975) ... Sarah Le Sauvage (1975) ... Nelly Hustle (1975) ... Nicole Britton Si c'était à refaire (1976) ... Catherine Berger Anima persa (1977) ... Sofia Stolz March or Die (1977) ... Simone Picard Casotto (1977) ... Donna del sogno L'Argent des autres (1978) ... Cécile Rainier Ecoute voir... (1979) ... Claude Alphand Ils sont grands, ces petits (1979) ... Louise Mouchin À nous deux (1979) ... Françoise Courage fuyons (1979) ... Eva Le Dernier métro (1980) ... Marion Steiner Je vous aime (1980) ... Alice Le Choix des armes (1981) ... Nicole Durieux Hôtel des Amériques (1981) ... Hélène Le Choc (1982) ... Claire L'Africain (1983) ... Charlotte The Hunger (1983) ... Miriam Blaylock Le Bon plaisir (1984) ... Claire Després Fort Saganne (1984) ... Louise Paroles et musique (1984) ... Margaux Speriamo che sia femmina (1986) ... Claudia Le lieu du crime (1986) ... Lili Ravenel Agent trouble (1987) ... Amanda Weber Fréquence meurtre (1988) ... Jeanne Quester Drôle d'endroit pour une rencontre (1988) ... France La Reine blanche (1991) ... Liliane Ripoche Indochine (1992) ... Eliane Ma saison préférée (1993) ... Emilie La Partie d'échecs (1994) ... Marquise Les Cent et une nuits de Simon Cinéma (1995) ... La star-fantasme O Convento (1995) ... Hélène Les Voleurs (1996) ... Marie Leblanc Court toujours: L'inconnu (1996) (TV) ... Marianne Généalogies d'un crime (1997) ... Jeanne/Solange Sans titre (1997) Place Vendôme (1998) ... Marianne Malivert Le Vent de la nuit (1999) ... Hélène Belle maman (1999) ... Léa Pola X (1999) ... Marie Le Temps retrouvé (1999) ... Odette de Crecy Est-Ouest (1999) ... Gabrielle Develay Dancer In The Dark (2000) ... Kathy Je rentre à la maison (2001) ... Marguerite Absolument fabuleux (2001) ... Une spectatrice du défilé The Musketeer (2001) ... The Queen Le Petit poucet (2001) ... La reine 8 femmes (2002) ... Gaby Au plus près du paradis (2002) ... Fanette Les Liaisons dangereuses (2003) (TV) .... Marquise Isabelle deMerteuil Um Filme Falado (2003) ... Delfina Princesse Marie (2004) (TV) ... Marie Bonaparte Rois et reine (2004) ... Mme Vasset Les Temps qui changent (2004) ... Cécile Palais royal! (2005) ... Eugénia Le Concile de Pierre (2006) ... Sybille Weber Nip/Tuck (1 episode, 2006) ... Diana Lubey Le Héros de la famille (2006) ... Alice Mirmont Après lui (2007) ... Camille Persepolis (2007) (voice) ... Mrs. Satrapi, Marjane's mother Frühstück mit einer Unbekannten (2007) (TV) ... Elegante Dame Un conte de Noël (2008) ... Junon Mes Stars et moi (2008) ... Solange Je veux voir (2008) ... L’actrice celebre Le fille du RER (2009) ... Louise Cyprien (2009) ... Vivianne Wagner