House of Tolerance

House of Tolerance (, also known as House of Pleasures) is a 2011 French drama film written and directed by Bertrand Bonello, starring Hafsia Herzi, Céline Sallette, Jasmine Trinca, Adèle Haenel, Alice Barnole, Iliana Zabeth and Noémie Lvovsky. The film had its world premiere in the Competition section of the Cannes Film Festival on 16 May 2011. Plot The story is set in a luxurious Parisian brothel (a 'maison close', like Le Chabanais) in the early 20th century, and follows the closeted life of a group of prostitutes: their rivalries, hopes, fears, pleasures and pains. Cast Production The genesis of the project was a merge of two film ideas Bertrand Bonello had been thinking of. About ten years earlier, he had tried to make a film about modern brothels, but the project had been cancelled. After finishing On War (2008), Bonello decided that he wanted his next film to be about dynamics within a group of women, and his partner suggested a film about prostitutes in a historical setting. The director then became interested in the aspect of a brothel as a closed world from the viewpoint of the prostitutes. The idea of a scar in the form of a smile came from the film The Man Who Laughs (1928), an adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel with the same name. Bonello says he dreamed about the film two nights in a row while he was writing House of Tolerance, and decided to include a female character with such a scar.