Les Amants (film)
"Les Amants" is a French film directed by Louis Malle, adapted from the novel "Point de Lendemain" by Dominique Vivant. The story revolves around a young wife who feels neglected in her marriage and embarks on affairs with a sophisticated Parisian man and a young archaeologist, ultimately choosing to leave her husband for one of her lovers. Upon its release, the film faced significant controversy, especially in the United States, where it was met with legal challenges regarding obscenity. Many theaters exhibiting the film were prosecuted, leading to a notable court case in Ohio that reached the U.S. Supreme Court. In the landmark decision of Jacobellis v. Ohio (1964), the Court ruled that "Les Amants" was not obscene and thus protected from government censorship. Justice Potter Stewart famously noted the subjective nature of obscenity, asserting that while it is difficult to define, this film did not meet that standard. "Les Amants" remains an important work in the context of film history and discussions about censorship and artistic expression.
Subject Terms
Les Amants (film)
Type of work: Film
Released: 1958
Director: Louis Malle (1932-1995)
Subject matter: A young French woman in an unhappy marriage finds other lovers and eventually leaves her husband
Significance: After numerous attempts to censor this film because of its perceived obscenity, the U.S Supreme Court ruled the film not to be obscene and therefore a constitutionally protected form of expression
Adapted from the nineteenth century novel Point de Lendemain by Dominique Vivant and directed by Louis Malle, Les Amants is about an unhappy and neglected young wife who has affairs with a sophisticated Parisian and a young archeologist, for whom she eventually leaves her husband. The film met a cool reception in many U.S. cities, where many theaters that exhibited it were prosecuted for obscenity, or moved to edit the film themselves to avoid prosecution.
One obscenity case occurred in Ohio, where the manager of a Cleveland Heights theater was convicted in a county court for exhibiting an obscene film. Although Ohio’s state supreme court affirmed this conviction, the case eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court, in Jacobellis v. State of Ohio (1964). The Court ruled the film not to be obscene and therefore constitutionally protected from government censorship. Joining in this decision, Justice Potter Stewart noted the difficulty of defining obscenity but observed, “I know it when I see it, and the motion picture involved in this case is not that.”