Please note: This was screened in July 2025
Perhaps best known as the producer of Chantal Akerman’s groundbreaking Jeanne Dielman, which topped the BFI’s list of 100 Greatest Films in 2022, Vecchiali was a contemporary of French New Wave pioneers Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard (and also briefly wrote for the influential Cahiers du Cinema).
Rosa la Rose, Fille Publique demonstrates Vecchiali’s intuition as a filmmaker behind the camera as he elicits a remarkable performance from the 20-year-old Marianne Basler. This sensitive drama is anchored by her Cesar Award-nominated turn as Rosa ‘la rose’, a working girl from Les Halles whose fleeting moment of contact with blue collar worker Julien (Pierre Cosso, An American Werewolf in Paris) opens deep reserves of feeling. However, this clashes with Rosa’s friendships with her fellow escorts, not to mention her indulgent pimp Gilbert (Jean Sorel, Belle de Jour). A perceptive exposé of sex work that transcends the era in which it was made which acts a pointed commentary on women’s sexuality.
A 2K restoration approved by Paul Vacchiali c/o Radiance Films.