Place Vendome W/S [VHS] [1999]

Marianne (Catherine Deneuve) is the alcoholic wife of a respected jeweler who is only brought out on special occasions, spending most of her life in a rehab for the wealthy which is her primary home. She is forced to pull herself together when her husband Vincent Malivert kills himself, leaving behind a fortune in diamonds that have a questionable history. When she attempts to find a buyer for them she discovers the cache was stolen in it's uncut form from the Russian Mafia. As the intrigue escalates, Marianne's own past in the world of diamond dealers is revealed, including the betrayel which blacklisted her as a jewel dealer and drove her to the bottle.

She will be forced to confront the demons in her past when her betrayer and his new protege come into the picture. Stunning beauty Emmanuelle Seigner has a pivotal role as the mirror image of Marianne 20 years before, unaware that history may be repeating itself. Marianne will have to choose between revenge and redemption to discover if love really does mean getting lied to and betrayed.

Deneuve, one of the world's finest actersses and greatest beauties, lets her hair down and imbues her character with a subtle vulnerability that won her Best Actress honors at the Venice Film Festival, and had it been a little less foreign and a bit more flashy, could easily have garnered an Oscar as well.

If you like foreign films, or Catherine Deneuve, or both, this is definitely one you'll want to add to your collection.