--- title: "Three Lives and Only One Death" year: 1996 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/three-lives-and-only-one-death" fi1m_id: "three-lives-and-only-one-death" imdb_id: "tt0117968" tmdb_id: 55049 wikidata_id: "Q1133651" fi1m_score: 77 critics_reviews: 3 published: "2026-09-26T02:46:09.208701+00:00" updated: "2026-09-26T02:46:09.817253+00:00" region: "AE" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Three Lives and Only One Death (1996) Directed by Raúl Ruiz · 2h 03m · Comedy, Crime, Fantasy, Mystery ## Identity Three Lives and Only One Death - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/three-lives-and-only-one-death - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** three-lives-and-only-one-death - **IMDb ID:** tt0117968 - **TMDB ID:** 55049 - **Wikidata ID:** Q1133651 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117968/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/55049, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1133651 **Fi1m score: 77** · Critics: 3 of 6 reviews so far *In a sentence:* Marcello Mastroianni does four people’s work; we would still have let him leave a little earlier > Raúl Ruiz’s comedy of shifting identities gives Marcello Mastroianni four roles and plenty of room to be funny. It is an inviting puzzle with a playful lead, though 123 minutes gives its complications more time than they need. ## Synopsis Marcello Mastroianni plays Mateo Strano, Georges Vickers, Butler and Luc Allamand in a story that moves between comedy, crime, fantasy and mystery. Maria (Marisa Paredes), Cecile (Chiara Mastroianni), Helene (Arielle Dombasle) and Martin (Melvil Poupaud) are among the people in its shifting realities. Anna Galiena plays Maria Gabri – Colosso “Tania la Corse”, Jean-Yves Gautier plays Mario, and Pierre Bellemare is the Radio Narrator. Raúl Ruiz directs and writes with Pascal Bonitzer, bringing these characters into a film built around one actor’s four roles. ## Review *Three Lives and Only One Death* is good, peculiar entertainment, provided an evening of uncertainty sounds appealing. Raúl Ruiz mixes comedy, crime, fantasy and mystery, with Marcello Mastroianni taking four roles and giving us good reason to follow him through the complications. It is funny and approachable, although it asks for more time than its pleasures quite justify. The chief reason to stay is Mastroianni, who treats the strangeness with an appealing lack of fuss. Mastroianni plays Mateo Strano, Georges Vickers, Butler and Luc Allamand, and the performance could easily have become an exercise in displaying his versatility. Instead, the pleasure comes from his bemused composure as the roles and realities shift. We laughed at how little he seems to need our agreement that any of this is reasonable. His playful approach gives us someone to enjoy watching, and keeps the effort of following the film from becoming the only thing we notice. Ruiz writes with Pascal Bonitzer, and their mixture of genres leaves room for uncertainty about how seriously to take what we are watching. A crime film ordinarily makes us attentive to connections; a fantasy can make that same attention feel slightly foolish. Here, the uncertainty is often funny, particularly because Mastroianni seems so comfortable within it. Ruiz is good at inviting curiosity without making the whole enterprise feel like a test, although curiosity alone cannot carry every minute of a feature. Laurent Machuel handles the cinematography, Luc Chalon the production design and Jorge Arriagada the music. Our attention keeps returning to Mastroianni, whose manner gives us something consistent to follow amid the shifting roles. That emphasis suits the comedy, though it also means that the film depends heavily on how much pleasure we take in watching him work. Once his bemusement becomes familiar, the surrounding intricacy has to provide more of the entertainment. The reservation is length. At 123 minutes, the film gives us ample opportunity to appreciate its ingenuity, and then rather more opportunity to keep appreciating it. Rudolfo Wedeles’s editing does not quite prevent that pleasure from thinning as we become accustomed to the changes of identity. We wanted a firmer sense of selection, particularly when the enjoyment of Mastroianni’s performance began giving way to an awareness of how long we had been watching it. For a mystery, this puts considerable weight on our willingness to follow a performer without continually checking our understanding of the story. The approach makes it worth seeking out for Mastroianni’s playfulness, with the warning that an appetite for tidy plotting is unlikely to help. Its humour makes the wandering enjoyable, but some of that wandering could have been spared without losing what makes the film distinctive. Choose it when four Mastroianni roles sound more attractive than the prospect of getting everything straight. *Fi1m score 77, published 26 September 2026.* ## Straight answers **Is Three Lives and Only One Death worth watching?** *Three Lives and Only One Death* is worth watching for Marcello Mastroianni’s playful four-role performance and its approachable strangeness; we score it 77 out of 100. We recommend it to anyone who enjoys comic uncertainty, though its 123 minutes stretch the pleasure and its shifting realities are unlikely to satisfy an appetite for tidy plotting. **How long is Three Lives and Only One Death, and what is it rated?** *Three Lives and Only One Death* runs 2h 03m. It is a comedy and crime film. **Where can I watch Three Lives and Only One Death in the UAE?** *Three Lives and Only One Death* is not on any streaming or rental service in the UAE at the moment. It is available in 1 other country; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily. **How violent or frightening is Three Lives and Only One Death, and is it suitable for children?** *Three Lives and Only One Death* has no UK or US certificate supplied, so we cannot give a rating-based recommendation for children or confirm its level of violence or fright. We describe its mixture of comedy, crime, fantasy and mystery as funny and approachable, but that does not establish its suitability for younger viewers. **How does Three Lives and Only One Death compare to The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie?** *Three Lives and Only One Death* offers a more performer-centred identity puzzle than [*The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie*](https://film.one/film/the-discreet-charm-of-the-bourgeoisie), whose interrupted dinners provide the setting for dry, unsettling social comedy. We favour the latter for ensemble humour, despite some repetitive interruptions; choose the former for Mastroianni’s four-role playfulness, with a stronger caveat about its length. **What should I watch after Three Lives and Only One Death?** After *Three Lives and Only One Death*, try [*The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie*](https://film.one/film/the-discreet-charm-of-the-bourgeoisie) (1972, Fi1m 83): Social composure persists through absurdity, with dinner remaining an unreasonable ambition. Then [*The Double Life of Véronique*](https://film.one/film/the-double-life-of-veronique) (1991, Fi1m 86): For the stranger, more melancholy possibilities of lives that seem connected; and [*Being John Malkovich*](https://film.one/film/being-john-malkovich) (1999, Fi1m 89): Another straight-faced comedy that makes having an identity seem unnecessarily complicated. ### Reviews we read (3) - **Los Angeles Times**, Kevin Thomas (85/100, inferred): Thomas calls the film an exquisite, slyly intricate fable, though its ending leaves viewers confounded and disturbed. He praises Mastroianni’s bemused aplomb as he moves through the film’s shifting roles and realities. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-11-29-ca-5728-story.html) - **Variety**, Deborah Young (85/100, inferred): Young finds the film surprisingly accessible, enjoyable, and witty despite its overlong running time. She especially praises Mastroianni’s playful performance across four roles. [Read](https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/three-lives-and-only-one-death-1200445780/) - **The New York Times** (64/100, inferred): The accessible page provides no review text, so its verdict cannot be determined. No praise or complaint can be reliably identified. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1996/06/07/style/IHT-the-movie-guide-trois-vies-et-une-seule-mort.html) ## Details - **Director:** Raúl Ruiz - **Director:** Raúl Ruiz - **Writer:** Pascal Bonitzer, Raúl Ruiz - **Cinematography:** Laurent Machuel - **Editor:** Rudolfo Wedeles - **Music:** Jorge Arriagada - **Production design:** Luc Chalon - **Costume design:** Jeanne Berthon, Monique Perrot, Anne Schotte - **Producer:** Paulo Branco - **Cast:** Marcello Mastroianni as Mateo Strano / Georges Vickers / Butler / Luc Allamand; Anna Galiena as Maria Gabri - Colosso "Tania la Corse"; Marisa Paredes as Maria; Chiara Mastroianni as Cecile; Arielle Dombasle as Helene; Jean-Yves Gautier as Mario; Melvil Poupaud as Martin; Féodor Atkine as André - **Runtime:** 2h 03m - **First release (France):** 15 May 1996 - **Genres:** Comedy, Crime, Fantasy, Mystery - **Budget:** $500,000 ## Where to watch in the UAE Not streaming, renting or buying in the UAE at the last check. Also available in: ES. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie* (1972), Fi1m 83: Social composure persists through absurdity, with dinner remaining an unreasonable ambition. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-discreet-charm-of-the-bourgeoisie.md) - *The Face of Another* (1966): A colder, more troubling account of changing faces and uncertain identity. - *The Double Life of Véronique* (1991), Fi1m 86: For the stranger, more melancholy possibilities of lives that seem connected. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-double-life-of-veronique.md) - *Being John Malkovich* (1999), Fi1m 89: Another straight-faced comedy that makes having an identity seem unnecessarily complicated. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/being-john-malkovich.md) - *Holy Motors* (2012), Fi1m 84: A performer moves between identities, with less concern for making anyone comfortable. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/holy-motors.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/three-lives-and-only-one-death