IFC Films Sets U.S. Release Date for Cannes Breakout ‘Corsage’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Leo Barraclough

IFC Films has set the U.S. release date for “Corsage,” whose star Vicky Krieps won the best performance prize in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival. Marie Kreutzer’s film will have its North American premiere at the Toronto Film Festival, and the New York Film Festival has just announced that the film will screen there too. IFC Films will then release it in U.S. theaters on Dec. 23.

The film received rave reviews at Cannes, with The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw writing that Krieps gives “an exhilaratingly fierce, uningratiating performance,” and Variety‘s Jessica Kiang describing the “brilliant” film as “a witty subversion of biopic and costume-drama clichés.” “Corsage” is likely to be selected as Austria’s entry for the Academy Award for Best International Film, and Krieps may even have a shot at the best actress Oscar.

More from Variety

Picturehouse Entertainment will release the film in the U.K. on Dec. 30. Other distributors include Ad Vitam in France, BIM in Italy, The Searchers in Benelux, Adso Films in Spain, and M2 in Poland. MK2 Films is handling international sales.

“Corsage” chronicles a critical period in the life of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. It starts in 1877 when Elisabeth – renowned for her beauty – is celebrating her 40th birthday. We see her insisting that her corset is laced ever tighter, and restricting what she eats to make that so. It is a metaphor for how she is constrained by the expectations of society – limited to merely ceremonial duties, despite her intelligence, lust for life and rebellious spirit.

Read Variety‘s interview with Kreutzer and Krieps here.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.

Advertisement