Overview
A man's obsession with a mysterious woman leads to a tumultuous journey of desire and frustration.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- surreal
- unsettling
- arthouse film night
- film studies viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a frequently unsettling, formally inventive masterpiece and a sharp treatise on the quixotic nature of lust and love.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Conchita is played by Carole Bouquet and Ángela Molina, making the heroine's shifting persona visible rather than merely psychological.
Conchita continually tantalizes Mathieu while refusing to let his desire reach satisfaction.
Mathieu's public bucket humiliation and the recurring bomb threats turn polished social behavior into comic grotesquerie.
Mathieu narrates his fixation on Conchita without recognizing that her identity is presented through two contrasting performers.
Films like That Obscure Object of Desire, and why
Belle de Jour
surrealist romantic obsession, erotic frustration, dark comedy, and an unreliable sense of desire
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Buñuelian bourgeois satire, sexual repression, surreal disruptions, and provocative romantic antagonism
The Piano Teacher
obsessive desire, psychologically unstable romance, erotic ambiguity, and elegant European art-house style
Last Year at Marienbad
unconsummated attraction, shifting identity, dreamlike realism, and enigmatic romantic power games
Movie Details
- Director
- Luis Buñuel
- Release Date
- 1977-08-17
- Runtime
- 103 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (466)
Cast
- Fernando Rey
- Carole Bouquet
- Ángela Molina
- Julien Bertheau
- André Weber
- Milena Vukotić
- María Asquerino
- Ellen Bahl
- Valerie Blanco
- Auguste Carrière
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is That Obscure Object of Desire about?
- A wealthy Frenchman’s obsessive pursuit of an elusive maid becomes a sly, surreal comedy of desire, humiliation, and unstable identity.
- What is That Obscure Object of Desire like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of That Obscure Object of Desire as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is That Obscure Object of Desire violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in That Obscure Object of Desire as mild.
- What did critics think of That Obscure Object of Desire?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a frequently unsettling, formally inventive masterpiece and a sharp treatise on the quixotic nature of lust and love.
- Which films are like That Obscure Object of Desire?
- Films with a similar feel include Belle de Jour, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, The Piano Teacher, and Last Year at Marienbad.
- How long is That Obscure Object of Desire?
- That Obscure Object of Desire runs 103 minutes.
- Where can I watch That Obscure Object of Desire?
- In United States, That Obscure Object of Desire is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
