The Dreamlife of Angels

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The Dreamlife of Angels

R,

1998,

1h 53m,

Drama

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Watchlist

93%

43 Reviews

Tomatometer

84%

2,500+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

93%

Tomatometer

43 Reviews

84%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Isa and Marie bond while working in a French sweatshop and soon begin sharing an apartment that Marie is watching for a hospitalized mother and daughter. Marie, hoping to avoid a life of struggle and poverty, takes up with Chriss, a nightclub owner whose most attractive asset is his money. Isa recognizes the ultimate futility of the relationship and tries to keep Marie away from him, but her interference puts their friendship at risk.

Critics Consensus

Showcasing excellent lead performances, The Dreamlife of Angels is an intelligent, absorbing character study of two women.

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Kenneth Turan

Los Angeles Times

Feb 14, 2001

Frank, intimate, touching, with an emotional immediacy that is killing.

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Charles Taylor

Salon.com

Jan 1, 2000

Heralds a humanist cinema that neither shortchanges our minds nor cheapens what's in our hearts.

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Susan Stark

Detroit News

Jan 1, 2000

3/4

Zonca shows an extraordinary ability to get into the female psyche.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Jun 28, 2026

4/5

...naturalistically acted and performed, but the low-key presentation only partly disguises Zonca’s determination to turn clichés inside out; there’s no miracles here, just bravery in the face of a world without pity or remorse…’

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Jas Keimig

The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

Dec 9, 2021

Both Isa and Marie have bad haircuts, dressed in well-worn clothing that probably just barely keeps them warm. There's beauty in those touches of reality, too...

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Jim Lane

Sacramento News & Review

Aug 7, 2008

3/5

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Theodore S

Oct 1, 2017

Good story about two single women and how the choices the two make effect their lives. One makes poor choices and the other good choices. Some may say the poor choices are desperate. Yep. Good movie.

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Erick Zonca

Director

Élodie Bouchez

Isabelle 'Isa' Tostin

Natacha Régnier

Marie Thomas

Grégoire Colin

Chriss

Jo Prestia

Fredo

Patrick Mercado

Charly

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Synopsis

Isa and Marie bond while working in a French sweatshop and soon begin sharing an apartment that Marie is watching for a hospitalized mother and daughter. Marie, hoping to avoid a life of struggle and poverty, takes up with Chriss, a nightclub owner whose most attractive asset is his money. Isa recognizes the ultimate futility of the relationship and tries to keep Marie away from him, but her interference puts their friendship at risk.

Director: Erick Zonca
Producer: François Marquis
Screenwriter: Erick Zonca, Roger Bohbot, Virginie Wagon, Pierre Chosson
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics, Columbia TriStar Home Video
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Canadian French
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 30, 1998, Original
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.7M
Runtime: 1h 53m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR

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