Why doesn't this extraordinary actress get more work? Actually, there aren't many movies made these days that are good enough to accomodate such a powerful talent. Note how lost and out of place she seemed in the (very mediocre) Hollywood remake of 'Les Diaboliques.'

The story of a great love - no less great for its absolute one-sidedness. I was especially impressed with the ending - which explicitly points out that the true focus of Adele's obsession was... something else entirely. Begs the question: is madness really love?

Well worth your time.

This is a must in your collection. The charismatic and sideral beauty of Isabelle Adjani enriches itself for her gifted talent as actress .
I don't think in any other actress in that age (with the exception of Shygulla or Jill Claybourgh ) who were capable to win the this defiant performance . This role is hyper difficult and Adjani carries to cosmical levels.
The story turns around the hopeless relation between Adele and a french officer. She leaves everything in France for join him : but the result is useless.
The slow of the progressive madness of Adele is told with such richeness of creative talent , that you wonder why Adjani didn't win the Academy Award with this one.
The picture is perfect in every little detail. A winner and one of the most perfect french films in the seventies.

This movie is a life story of Adele Hugo, the daughter of the famous Victor Hugo.
You must watch this movie and learn what True Love really is!

I'd give my both arms for a wife like Adele yet the man she was obsessed with didn't care at all about her!

A must see movie!

Isabelle Adjani again takes on a role of the rejected lover. This is the true story of Victor Hugo's daughter Adele, who enamoured of a military man, follows him to Halifax and refuses to accept his rejection. She does a fine job of depicting a young lady who has gone off the edge. The story is reminiscent of her portrayal of Camille Claudel, another excellent movie. Isabelle Adjani is beautiful to look at and does a fine job of portraying Adele. I enjoyed this film very much. For those who do not understand French, there are moments when English is used throughout the film. The subtitles do justice to the French.

The descent into delusion and insanity is skillfully portrayed by Isabelle Adjani in this film that opens by stating that it is about "events that really happened, and people who really existed".
Set mostly in Halifax, beginning in 1863, the cinematography by Nestor Almendros is exquisite, with the camera lovingly capturing Adjani's gorgeous face. Using a somber palette, with occasional patches of brilliant red, it often has the look of an old painting, and the music of the early 20th century composer Maurice Jaubert fits in nicely.

Francois Truffaut (who 19 minutes into the film makes a brief cameo appearance) tells this story with gentleness and sensitivity, keeping the pace flowing; though a rather gloomy tale, it never gets either depressing or boring. It shows what started out as love, with a resolution to bravely cross the ocean to be with her lover, become increasingly demented, from being a stalker, to debasing herself by her willingness to "share", to the end, which takes place in Barbados. In the short and almost mute part of Baa, Madame Louise is a powerful and beautiful presence.

Adjani won numerous awards for this 1975 film, and was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar (Louise Fletcher won for "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"). Though the make-up is subtle and clever, it's her stellar performance that bring believability to this film.
The historical photos and information in the final scene are fascinating, and make for a satisfying ending to another of Truffaut's great films, and one I have enjoyed seeing numerous times.