The Ape Woman

The Ape Woman
The Ape Woman
	Film poster
Directed by	Marco Ferreri
Written by	Rafael Azcona; Marco Ferreri
Produced by	Carlo Ponti
Starring	Ugo Tognazzi
Cinematography	Aldo Tonti
Edited by	Mario Serandrei
Music by	Teo Usuelli
Release date	1964;
Running time	100 minutes
Countries	Italy; France
Languages	Italian; French

The Ape Woman (Italian: La donna scimmia, French: Le Mari de la femme à barbe) is a 1964 Italian-French drama film directed by Marco Ferreri. It was entered into the 1964 Cannes Film Festival.^[1] The film was inspired by the real-life story of Julia Pastrana a 19th-century woman exploited as a freak show attraction by her manager Theodore Lent.

In 2008, the film was selected to enter the list of the 100 Italian films to be saved.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Plot[]

Marie, the "Ape Woman", is completely covered with hair; the entrepreneur Focaccia discovers her in a convent in Naples; he marries her (a condition imposed by the nuns) and begins exhibiting her to the public. He tries to sell her to a man who insists on her virginity, but she is a little reluctant. After tasting success in Paris, she dies during childbirth. Focaccia recovers her mummy from the museum of natural history and exhibits it in Naples.

Cast[]

Ugo Tognazzi as Antonio Focaccia
Annie Girardot as Maria
Achille Majeroni as Majoroni
Filippo Pompa Marcelli as Bruno
[it] as Sister Furgonicino (as Linda De Felice)
Elvira Paolini as Chambermaid
Ugo Rossi as Ponszoner

Release[]

The Ape Woman was released in 4K restoration^[5] on Blu-ray and digital platforms on 11 October 2021.^[6]

References[]

^ "Festival de Cannes: The Ape Woman". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
^ Massimo Bertarelli, Il cinema italiano in 100 film: i 100 film da salvare, Gremese Editore, 2004, ISBN 88-8440-340-5.
^ Massimo Borriello (4 March 2008). "Cento film e un'Italia da non dimenticare" [One hundred films and an Italy not to be forgotten]. Movieplayer (in Italian). Retrieved 15 October 2021.
^ "Ecco i cento film italiani da salvare" [Here are the hundred Italian films worth saving]. Corriere della Sera. 28 February 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
^ "The Ape Woman". Film Authority. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
^ Bradshaw, Peter (7 October 2021). "The Ape Woman review – freakshow satire with bizarre alternative-ending payoff". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2021.

External links[]

The Ape Woman at IMDb

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[1] "Festival de Cannes: The Ape Woman". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 15 October 2021.

[2] Massimo Bertarelli, Il cinema italiano in 100 film: i 100 film da salvare, Gremese Editore, 2004, ISBN 88-8440-340-5.

[3] Massimo Borriello (4 March 2008). "Cento film e un'Italia da non dimenticare" [One hundred films and an Italy not to be forgotten]. Movieplayer (in Italian). Retrieved 15 October 2021.

[4] "Ecco i cento film italiani da salvare" [Here are the hundred Italian films worth saving]. Corriere della Sera. 28 February 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2021.

[5] "The Ape Woman". Film Authority. Retrieved 15 October 2021.

[6] Bradshaw, Peter (7 October 2021). "The Ape Woman review – freakshow satire with bizarre alternative-ending payoff". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2021.

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