BAZAAR

that letter. Because you have to be ableto choose what you want, and not toalways think that sex means having togive birth. I’ve always been on the sideof women. I do what I think is right inmy opinion.”Whether one agrees or disagreeswith Deneuve, she undeniably speakswith arresting candour. And with thatsame candour, she talks about hersuccess in cinema.“It’s not so much about talent at thebeginning,” says Deneuve. “It has a lotto do with your physical appearance.When you have a pretty or nice-looking woman entering a room, sheappeals to people. It’s unfair but it’s life.”It was her late sister FrançoiseDorléac, who tragically died at the ageof 25 in a car accident, who inspiredDeneuve to start acting.“My sister was an actress before me.It was during the holidays that theyasked me to do a test for a film whereshe was going to have a sister,” recallsDeneuve. “That’s how I started. I wasnot sure I would go on making filmswhen I did that film with her.”With an acting career that spans over50 years and more than a hundredfilms, and a discerning choice ofunconventional filmmakers, Deneuveoriginally gained recognition at the ageof 21 in Jacques Demy’s musicalThe Umbrellas of Cherbourg.“It has to do with luck but also thechoices you make,” she says. “And it’strue that I was very lucky to startworking with very good directors.Until I met Jacques Demy forThe Umbrellas of Cherbourg, I was notsure I was going to stay in films.”She continued to mesmeriseaudiences with her portrayal ofmysterious beauties in variouscelebrated films, including LuisBuñuel’s Belle de Jour, FrançoisTruffaut’s The Last Metro, and RomanPolanski’s Repulsion, proving a skillfulability to tackle complex characters.On screen and off, Deneuvefascinated the world, including thefashion arena. A special relationshipdeveloped between her and designerYves Saint Laurent, which beganwhen he famously dressed her for Bellede Jour.“My relationship with fashion hasbeen there for a very long time, andbegan with Yves Saint Laurent himself.I started to go to his couture housevery, very young, which is quiteamazing when I think about it today.The relationship lasted, and it wassomething I really cared about,” saysDeneuve. “More than clothes, I likematerials. I like fabrics, colours....When you follow someone for such along time, when you wear his clothes,there is something that doesn’t comeacross in words. You know the qualityand sensation of having the silk againstyour skin, because everything is doneby hand; the inside is as beautiful as theoutside. So it gives you a taste for that.And you learn to see, to look at thingsa little differently.”Through that relationship, and heradvertising campaigns for Yves SaintLaurent, Chanel, and later LouisVuitton, Deneuve’s image rose publiclyand globally as a symbol of eleganceand femininity.While maintaining her standing inthe fashion world to this day, she alsoremains very much involved with the``````movie industry. And even thoughaging can seem amplified on the silverscreen, Deneuve is not at all deterred.“When you grow older, it’s true thatthe [film] parts are different; you arenot always at the centre of the story.It’s more difficult, but you can findinteresting parts,” she says. “You’realways compared to what you were inthe other films. It’s hard for actors [togrow old], even for men. I’m doingmy best. I’m not fighting to stay inshape. What I want to keep, is theenergy, which I think is very important.But I have children. I have a life.I suppose if I was an actress withoutchildren, without grandchildren,my relation to age and getting olderwould be different. But when you havechildren and grandchildren, it’s a verydifferent story.”Deneuve is successful at preservingthat vitality, balancing work withweekends in the countryside, whichshe says are essential to her. Gardeningand spending time in nature are someof her great pleasures, as well aswatching Mad Men, Breaking Bad,Homeland, and other French TV series.She is currently shooting a newmovie with French director AndréTéchiné to be released at the end of theyear, and speaks of her new projectwith pure excitement.“There’s always a bit of fear, a bit ofstage fright,” she says. “It’s truly anadventure; not only acting but to livefor a couple of months with peopleyou do not know. It’s an adventure thatis very important to me.”And it seems that it is this very senseof adventure that continuously propelsDeneuve to surprising new heights. ■“It’s not so much about talent at the beginning.It has a lot to do with your physical appearance.It’s unfair but it’s life.”