This film is part of Rentals
Colette
This witty, Belle Époque-era biopic stars Keira Knightley and Dominic West as literary couple Colette and Willy, whose relationship rewrote social and gender rules.
Director: Wash Westmoreland
Overview
Free-thinking country girl Sidonie-Gabrielle ‘Colette’ is barely out of her teens when she marries ‘Willy’, a literary impresario 14 years her senior; the two become a fixture of the Paris avant-garde salons of the late 19th century. Recognising her talent, Willy puts Colette to work, publishing her under his name. But when her titillating, risqué Claudine series – thinly veiled autobiographical tales of the Sapphic loves of a French school girl – becomes a smash hit, Colette tires of Willy stealing her success and fights back to reclaim her own literary name.
Following his Oscar-winning Still Alice, writer-director Wash Westmoreland delivers a rollicking, bang-on-zeitgeist drama (and a glorious tribute to Westmoreland’s late partner Richard Glatzer, with whom he started the project). Dominic West gleefully embodies the charming if sleazy Willy, who is shocked when his wife challenges him. And Knightley is sensational as Colette, blooming from provincial maiden to a radical rule-defying feminist and iconoclast. Colette is a swaggering portrait of a great female artist – defiant in her public affairs with both men and women, and in fighting her husband for her intellectual property rights – and a paean to one of the architects of modern womanhood.
Related
The Iron Claw The Iron Claw
Biopic 2023 132 mins Director: Sean Durkin
Zac Efron, Harris Dickinson and Jeremy Allen White lead this brilliant, bruising true story of wrestling glory and family tragedy.
Your Fat Friend Your Fat Friend
Biopic 2024 96 mins Director: Jeanie Finlay
A powerful and moving documentary exploring body image, diet culture and anti-fat bias through the life and work of Aubrey Gordon.
Angelheaded Hipster Angelheaded Hipster
Biopic 2023 99 mins Director: Ethan Silverman
Stomping documentary celebrating the revolutionary music of Glam Rock pioneer Marc Bolan and T. Rex, combining archive footage with new musical interpretations by renowned contemporary artists.
Fragments of Paradise Fragments of Paradise
Documentary 2023 98 mins Director: KD Davison
Intimate portrait of the life and career of the pioneering filmmaker, poet and critic, Jonas Mekas, assembled from thousands of hours of his personal film footage and letters.
Tina Tina
Documentary 2021 118 mins Director: Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin
Classic live footage and engaging interviews create a powerful film that celebrates icon Tina Turner's tumultuous career.
Stanley Kubrick A Life in Pictures Stanley Kubrick A Life in Pictures
Biopic 2001 136 mins Director: Jan Harlan
With comprehensive access to home movies and behind the scenes footage, this is the definitive insight into the life of Stanley Kubrick.
RBG RBG
Biopic 2018 99 mins Director: Julie Cohen and Betsy West
Revelatory documentary on an unexpected hero - former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The Wife The Wife
Drama 2018 100 mins Director: Björn Runge
Glenn Close and Jonathan Pryce are the spouses with a secret in a tight, taut drama of ego and legacy.
Sauvage Sauvage
Drama 2018 99 mins Director: Camille Vidal-Naquet
The daily misfortunes of a lonesome rent boy are laid bare in this tough but tender portrait of life on the fringes of society.
Wildlife Wildlife
Drama 2018 105 mins Director: Paul Dano
Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal play a couple on the rocks in Paul Dano’s directorial debut, an elegant 1950s-set melodrama.
Shoplifters Shoplifters
Drama 2018 121 mins Director: Hirokazu Koreeda
Hirokazu Koreeda's modern masterpiece is dark yet touching account of an unorthodox family that relies on shoplifting to make ends meet.
Diego Maradona Diego Maradona
Documentary 2019 124 mins Director: Asif Kapadia
The supreme football superstar is the latest subject for acclaimed filmmaker Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna), as he deftly explores the complicated dynamic between Diego the man and Maradona the icon.
Bend it Like Beckham Bend it Like Beckham
Sport 2002 112 mins Director: Gurinder Chadha
Gurinder Chadha’s smash hit about an Asian girl with an undying love for football.
The Imitation Game The Imitation Game
Biopic 2014 115 mins Director: Morten Tyldum
Benedict Cumberbatch’s roundly acclaimed performance anchors the incredible, Oscar-winning story of code-breaker Alan Turing.
Still Alice Still Alice
Drama 2014 102 mins Director: Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland
Julianne Moore won an Oscar for her extraordinary performance as a linguistics professor diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
Our Mothers Our Mothers
Drama 2019 77 mins Director: César Díaz
As Guatemala confronts its violent past, a forensic anthropologist is tasked with identifying the dead, in this affecting Cannes prize-winning drama.
Red Herring Red Herring
Documentary 2023 94 mins Director: Kitson Vincent
Following his terminal diagnosis, young filmmaker Kit Vincent sets out to document an intimate and darkly humorous journey in this BIFA nominated documentary.
Robot Dreams Robot Dreams
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 103 mins Director: Pablo Berger
Spanish director Pablo Berger delivers a rich and emotionally engaging dialogue-free animation about friendship, set in a bustling 1980s New York City.
Stephen Stephen
Drama-documentary 2023 78 mins Director: Melanie Manchot
Artist Melanie Manchot’s debut feature is a visually striking film-within-a-film, exploring mental health and addiction.
Red Island Red Island
Drama 2023 117 mins Director: Robin Campillo
French writer-director Robin Campillo offers a searching exploration of memory and politics, in this boldly conceived story of boyhood in 1970s Madagascar.
Drift Drift
Drama 2023 93 mins Director: Anthony Chen
Cynthia Erivo delivers a captivating performance as a young refugee, who after fleeing war-torn Liberia finds hope when she meets a fellow lost soul.