The Lovers (film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Lovers
A scene from The Lovers
Directed by	Louis Malle
Starring	Jeanne Moreau
Release date(s)	1958
Country	France
Language	French
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

The Lovers (Les Amants) is a 1958 French drama film about adultery directed by Louis Malle and starring Jeanne Moreau. It tells the story of a woman who leaves her husband for another man after a night of passion. It was Malle's second feature film, made when he was 25 years old.

The film is important in American legal history as it resulted in a court case that questioned the definition of obscenity. A showing of the film in Cleveland Heights, Ohio's Coventry Village resulted in a criminal conviction of the theatre manager for public depiction of obscene material. He appealed his conviction to the United States Supreme Court, which reversed the conviction and ruled that the film was not obscene in its written opinion (Jacobellis v. Ohio). The case resulted in Justice Potter Stewart's famously vague definition of obscenity: "I know it when I see it."

[edit] External links

• The Lovers at the Internet Movie Database

Preceded by A Streetcar Named Desire

Special Jury Prize, Venice 1958 tied with La sfida

Succeeded by The Magician

v • d • e Films directed by Louis Malle Elevator to the Gallows • The Lovers • Zazie in the Metro • A Very Private Affair • The Fire Within • Viva Maria! • The Thief of Paris • Murmur of the Heart • Lacombe Lucien • Black Moon • Pretty Baby • Atlantic City • My Dinner with Andre • Crackers • Alamo Bay • Goodbye, Children • May Fools • Damage • Vanya on 42nd Street Shorts: Crazeologie • Station 307 • Histoires extraordinaires (1968) (segment "William Wilson") Documentary: The Silent World (with Jacques Cousteau) • Vive le Tour • Calcutta • Humain, trop humain • Place de la république • Close Up Television: Bons baisers de Bangkok • Phantom India • Dominique Sanda ou Le rêve éveillé • God's Country • And the Pursuit of Happiness