Catherine Deneuve: The Eternal Icon

Catherine Deneuve emerged in the 1960s to become perhaps the most enduring star of French cinema. Born in 1943, she began acting as a teenager but found her defining roles in the 1960s. Her ethereal beauty could have limited her to decorative roles, but Deneuve proved to be an actress of remarkable intelligence and daring.

Her collaborations with directors like Jacques Demy ("The Umbrellas of Cherbourg," 1964; "The Young Girls of Rochefort," 1967) showed her musical talents, while her work with Luis Buñuel ("Belle de Jour," 1967; "Tristana," 1970) revealed depths of perversity and complexity beneath the perfect surface.

What distinguished Deneuve was her ability to suggest mystery. Even in her most accessible roles, there remained something unknowable about her. This quality made her perfect for directors who wanted to explore the enigma of femininity. Her willingness to take risks—from playing a schizophrenic in Polanski's "Repulsion" (1965) to a lesbian vampire in Tony Scott's "The Hunger" (1983)—showed an actor unafraid of challenging her image.