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Writer of O

Play trailer Poster for Writer of O Released May 4, 2005 1h 20m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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50% Tomatometer 18 Reviews 50% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
This docudrama portrays Frenchwoman Dominique Aury (Catherine Mouchet), editor for a prestigious publisher, who during the '50s carries on an affair with her married employer, a well-known writer. The relationship leads to her penning "The Story of O," the controversial novel about a woman, O (Penelope Puymirat), who undergoes sexual training that some would deem slavery and others would call freedom. Aury writes the book under a pseudonym, and a series of interviews comment on its legacy.

Critics Reviews

View All (18) Critics Reviews
Steven Rea Philadelphia Inquirer The real reason to see this slight but interesting documentary is to watch and listen to the radiant Aury. Rated: 3/4 Nov 10, 2005 Full Review John Hartl Seattle Times [Aury] provides this talking-heads documentary with most of its vitality. Rated: 2.5/4 Aug 12, 2005 Full Review Ty Burr Boston Globe Because it doesn't have the heroic impact the filmmaker seems to have been looking for, she's forced to juggle, to diminishing returns. In the process, she raises more questions than she resolves. Rated: 2.5/4 Jul 1, 2005 Full Review Rex Roberts Film Journal International Rapaport intersperses her reflections and those of people who knew her with dramatizations. Feb 22, 2007 Full Review Rich Cline Shadows on the Wall An illuminating examination of censorship and sexuality. Rated: 4/5 May 18, 2006 Full Review William Arnold Seattle Post-Intelligencer Haunting and ultimately profound. Rated: B Aug 11, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (3) audience reviews
Audience Member Artistically done documentary interview of the anonymous French writer of "The Story of O." Extremely erotic reenactments of excerpts from the book interspersed with interviews and what appears to be a play, or plays, about the writer and the main character. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Audience Member Good documentary on the Story of O author. Not for the faint of heart or easily embarrassed. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review walter m [font=Century Gothic]"The Writer of O" is a slight documentary about the "Story of O", the controversial erotic novel published in France in 1954 about a woman giving herself body and soul to her lover. Submission is in itself conservative and nothing new; the novel going so far outside the bounds of society was.(Dramatized scenes from the book do a good job of pointing this out.)[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]The documentary focuses on Dominique Aury who had originally written the novel for her lover, Jean Paulhan, and was published under a pseudonym. Interviews are also conducted with the original publisher and John de St. Jorre, a writer and journalist, who broke the story of Aury's identity forty years after the book was published.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Writer of O

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Writer of O

A scene from the film WRITER OF O directed by Pola Rapaport. A scene from the film WRITER OF O directed by Pola Rapaport. A scene from the film WRITER OF O directed by Pola Rapaport. A scene from the film WRITER OF O directed by Pola Rapaport. On the set of the film WRITER OF O directed by Pola Rapaport. View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis This docudrama portrays Frenchwoman Dominique Aury (Catherine Mouchet), editor for a prestigious publisher, who during the '50s carries on an affair with her married employer, a well-known writer. The relationship leads to her penning "The Story of O," the controversial novel about a woman, O (Penelope Puymirat), who undergoes sexual training that some would deem slavery and others would call freedom. Aury writes the book under a pseudonym, and a series of interviews comment on its legacy.
Director
Pola Rapaport
Producer
Sylvie Cazin
Screenwriter
Pola Rapaport
Distributor
Zeitgeist Films
Production Co
INA Films, Blinding Light Inc.
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 4, 2005, Original
Release Date (DVD)
May 16, 2006
Box Office (Gross USA)
$8.1K
Runtime
1h 20m