The Female (French: La femme et le pantin, lit. 'The Woman and the Puppet', Italian: Femmina), released in the United Kingdom and the Philippines as A Woman Like Satan, is a 1959 drama film directed by Julien Duvivier. It is the fourth film adaptation of the 1898 novel The Woman and the Puppet by Pierre Louÿs. The film stars Brigitte Bardot and António Vilar, with Darío Moreno.
Contents
Premise
Mateo Diaz is a wealthy gentleman who loves and respects his wife but no longer finds her attractive because she is paralysed. He pursues Eva Marchand but she does not respond to his advances.
Cast
Brigitte Bardot as Éva Marchand
António Vilar as Don Mateo Diaz
Lila Kedrova as Manuela
Daniel Ivernel as Berthier
Darío Moreno as Arbadajian
Jacques Mauclair as Stanislas Marchand
Jess Hahn as Sidney
Production
Brigitte Bardot wrote in her autobiography that although the crew would call director Julien Duvivier "Dudu", the set was not harmonious. She also described the difficulty of filming in the heat of Seville during the Seville Fair. Her fee was $87,500.
Reception
Variety called it "old fashioned".