Michelle Pfeiffer's Cheri Shock

4 months ago 30th Jun 13:30

Michelle Pfeiffer was surprised at the "integrity" of her prostitute character in 'Cheri'.

The actress plays aging courtesan Lea de Lonval in the 1920s period drama - based on a 1920 novel by Colette - and admits she was amazed at the attitudes of the period.

She said: "I didn't know about this period at all and I was really surprised when I read how Colette describes the character.

"You sort of have your ideas about what a high-class prostitute or courtesan is, and what I love about Colette's writing is that there was nothing undignified about Lea."

I hadn't seen that character before

Michelle - who stars alongside Rupert Friend in the movie - admits she expects mixed reactions for the film.

She added to the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper: "The story's really about her feelings and about a woman making a choice to sell sex. Everyone's going to have different feelings about that, but Lea really has a lot of integrity, is very smart and thinks about other people. I hadn't seen that character before."