GRADE: 9
Biopic of adventurer Lola Montès who ends up as a circus attraction after being romantically involved with famous European men.
Director: Max Ophüls
Country: France | Germany
THOUGHTS:
One of those beautiful 1950s Cinemascope productions that thrills my eyes. The courtesan and dancer’s life is presented as a spectacle to be gawked at, leaving her ultimately just another caged beast in a circus menagerie. It’s a great metaphor for fame, but also for womanhood, as men pay money at the end of the film to simply talk to, touch, and gawk at Lola.