Pawel Pawlikowski made his mark on the film world directing poetic documentaries. His first film since the tragic death of his wife in 2006 is ambiguous psychological thriller The Woman in the Fifth.
Pawlikowski chose Douglas Kennedy's best-selling novel as his starting point, but didn't look at it just as a thriller, so he ended up making the most personal film he's ever made.
Ethan Hawke, the director's first choice for the role, is playing an American writer Tom who moves to Paris and strikes up a romance with a mysterious widow played by Kristin Scott Thomas.
In real life, Hawke is also a writer so he had more input on his character.
Well, ATO Pictures have released the trailer and poster for The Woman in Fifth, which opens June 15th, 2012.
The trailer does do a good job of showing off some of writer-director Pawlikowski‘s cool visuals reminding us that film's OK, it's not dead, people are still doing something that's not formulaic.
Hit the jump to check out the trailer and poster.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcvy2GcML5s[/youtube]
Here's the synopsis:
American writer Tom Ricks (Ethan Hawke) arrives in Paris to be closer to his young daughter who is living with his estranged ex-wife. Completely broke, he accepts a job as a night guard for a local crime boss. Stationed in a basement office, his only task is to push a button when a bell rings. The tranquility of the night, he hopes, will help him focus on his new novel. His days become more exciting when he starts a romance with Margit (Kristin Scott Thomas), a mysterious and elegant widow who sets strange rules to their meetings: she will only see him at her apartment in the fifth arrondissement, at 5 pm sharp, twice a week and he should ask no questions about her work or her past life. When people suddenly start dying around Tom, he begins to believe that a dark force has entered his life, punishing anyone who has recently done him wrong. After the police accuse him of murdering his neighbor, Tom tries to use his weekly visits to Margit's apartment as an alibi, only to find out that she hasn't lived at this address for the past 15 years.
