...And God Created Woman (1956) Et Dieu... créa la femme (original title)

Director:

Roger Vadim

Writers:

Roger Vadim and
Raoul Lévy

Release Date:

21 October 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

...but the devil invented Brigitte Bardot!

Plot:

In sunny St. Tropez, a young sexpot loves one brother but marries the other.

Plot Keywords:

Rabbit | Orphan | Marriage Proposal | 1950s | Saint Tropez

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Brigitte Bardot	...	Juliete Hardy
Curd Jürgens	...	Eric Carradine (as Curd Jurgens)
Jean-Louis Trintignant	...	Michel Tardieu
Jane Marken	...	Madame Morin (as Jeanne Marken)
Jean Tissier	...	M. Vigier-Lefranc
Isabelle Corey	...	Lucienne
Jacqueline Ventura	...	Mme Vigier-Lefranc
Jacques Ciron	...	Le secrétaire d'Eric
Paul Faivre	...	M. Morin
Jany Mourey	...	Le déléguée de l'évêché
Philippe Grenier	...	Perri
Jean Lefebvre	...	L'homme qui veut danser (as Jean Lefèvre)
Leopoldo Francés	...	Le danseur (as Leopoldo Frances)
Jean Toscano	...	Rene (as Toscano)
Marie Glory	...	Mme. Tardieu (as Mary Glory)
Georges Poujouly	...	Christian Tardieu
Christian Marquand	...	Antoine Tardieu
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Guy Henry	...	Un bagarreur (uncredited)
Raoul Lévy	...	Un joueur (uncredited)
Roger Vadim	...	Un ami d'Antoine (uncredited)
Claude Véga	...	Roger (uncredited)

Directed by
Roger Vadim		(as R. Vadim)

Writing credits
Roger Vadim		(as R. Vadim) and
Raoul Lévy		(as R. Lévy)

Produced by
Claude Ganz	....	assistant producer
Raoul Lévy	....	producer (as Raoul J. Lévy)

Original Music by
Paul Misraki

Cinematography by
Armand Thirard

Film Editing by
Victoria Mercanton

Production Design by
Jean André

Makeup Department
Hagop Arakelian	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Bernardi	....	unit manager: exteriors
Michel Choquet	....	production manager
Jacqueline Leroux-Cabuis	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Pierre Boursaus	....	assistant director
Paul Feyder	....	assistant director

Art Department
Jean Forestier	....	assistant decorator
Georges Petitot	....	assistant decorator

Sound Department
Pierre-Louis Calvet	....	sound
Maurice Dagonneau	....	assistant sound
Georges Vaglio	....	assistant sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Marc Champion	....	assistant camera
Robert Florent	....	assistant camera
Mirkine	....	still photographer (as Léo Mirkine)
Louis Née	....	assistant camera

Editorial Department
Suzanne Cabon	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Marc Lanjean	....	musical director

Other crew
Suzanne Durrenberger	....	script supervisor
Mai Harris	....	subtitler: English (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Cocinor
• Iéna Productions
• Union Cinématographique Lyonnaise (UCIL)

Distributors

• Cocinor (1956) (France) (theatrical)
• Kingsley-International Pictures (1957) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• TF1 Vidéo (2001) (France) (theatrical)
• Éditions René Chateau (2001) (France) (theatrical)
• World Film Magic (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Altomedia. Co. Ltd. (????) (Korea) (DVD)
• Altomedia. Co. Ltd. (????) (Korea) (VHS)
• Atlantic Film (2010) (Finland) (DVD)
• Atlantic Film (2009) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Concorde Home Entertainment (2006) (Germany) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2000) (USA) (DVD) (widescreen)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2010) (Australia) (DVD)
• Vestron Video (1982) (USA) (video) (CED Videodisc)
• Westlake Entertainment Group (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• World Film Magic Distribution (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Éditions René Chateau (2000) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Et Dieu... créa la femme" - France (original title)

Runtime:

95 min | USA:90 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French | English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:PG (video release) | UK:X (original rating) | Germany:12 (TV re-rating) | West Germany:18 (original rating) (1957) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Hong Kong:IIA | Sweden:15 | USA:PG (1978)

Filming Locations:

2 Rue de Cepoun Louis Sanmartin, Saint-Tropez, Var, France

Company:

Cocinor

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [Roger Vadim]Friend of Antoine.

Quotes:

Juliete Hardy:That's my favorite song!
Antoine Tardieu:It's the first time I ever heard it.
Juliete Hardy:Me too.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Coneheads (1983) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Mon coeur éclate

The Voice Matters

Sexuality is a mysterious creature at times, determined by many different elements: the physical appearance of a person, the way their body moves, their attitude towards life, the way they express their emotions, their creativity, the subtle fragrance they give off, the way they talk, and sometimes an x-factor that can't be defined. What strikes me about Bardot's powerful sexuality is that cinema really hadn't seen anything like it before she came around. The closest example I can think of in American film might be Lauren Bacall in "To Have and Have Not," but even that misses the mark. Bardot was not only a beautiful woman but she had a fun, mischievous and freedom-loving spirit and a fiery mind lurking around behind her sometimes poorly written characters, and these things make her even more attractive. Plus, she had a great voice. Which is why I was stunned to see a trailer for _Et Dieu... créa la femme_ dubbed into English at the end of the subtitled version. The woman doing Bardot's voice sounded awful, and so much of Brigitte's sexuality was lost. Imagine Bacall telling Bogie "You know how to whistle, don't you Steve?" in a squeaky, high-pitched voice. Would she be as sexy? I don't think so. Yet people watching the dubbed version of this film are getting something similar.

As far as the film itself goes, most everything has already been said in other comments. Bardot does a great job as Juliette - who else could have done the role so well? - and Jurgens was quite good as Eric Carradine. The setting is luscious and fits perfectly with Bardot's character and the overall mood of the tale. The music is excellent, from the title sequence at the beginning through the dance scene at the end. The story can be cliched at times and there are definitely machista elements. But it's not a bad story either, with good tension created between the brothers. The fight sequences, as someone else mentioned, are laughable and poorly done. But it doesn't really matter. It's Bardot's show all the way - from her nude Cinemascope sunbathing shot that opens the film, with the witty dialog between her and Jurgens, to her erotic dance that serves as the climax of the story. Along the way we get several nice scenes that show her broader persona, including the one where she sets the bird and rabbit free in the field, and the scene in the bookstore with the woman from the orphanage.

But, for the sake of Dieu, don't see this movie dubbed.