Dangerous Beauty

Marshall Herskovitz directed this look at life in 16th-century Venice, based on Margaret Rosenthal's 1994 book The Honest Courtesan. Positioned outside of the Venetian court, Veronica Franco (Catherine McCormack) hopes to rise above her station, but her interest in nobleman's son Marco Venier (Rufus Sewell) is blocked since his parents forbid their marriage. Following the path taken by her mother, Paola (Jacqueline Bisset), Veronica becomes a courtesan, finding this gives her a niche in the male-dominated society. When Vatican emissaries accuse her of witchcraft, she lashes back, using the trial as a feminist forum to expose the hypocrisies of the period. Filmed in 1996 in Venice and Rome with a variety of working titles (Courtesan, Venice, and The Honest Courtesan).