Originally thinking from the poster/DVD cover that this was a Horror movie,I was surprised to recently learn that it was actually Robert Hossein's take on the French New Wave (FNW),which led to me getting ready to find out how wretched the wretches could be.
The plot:
Since seeing them move from the US to France, Louise Martin has been fascinated by the activities of new neighbours Thelma and Jess Rooland,with Louise spending hours sitting by her window listening to the US records that they play.Wanting to know more about the Rooland's,Louise takes a deep breath and decides to ask the Rooland's if they would hire her as a maid.Getting hired as a maid,Louise's initial happiness gets wiped away,as she starts to lean of the events which led to the Rooland's leaving the US.
View on the film:
Backed by an echoing score from his dad André,co-writer/(along with Frédéric Dard) lead actor/director Robert Hossein & cinematographer Jacques Robin give the Rooland household a sparkling Art-Deco design,with the mix of light and shade subtly expressing the light exterior and the hard,closed-off interior of the Rooland's.Dabbing a moody narration on,Hossein & Robin get into a FNW swing which keeps the magnetic style focused on the pull that the Rooland's have on Louise,as surprisingly suggestive sex scenes and clouded in Film Noir train tracks show the rout that has set in for the Rooland's,that sets off ultra-stylised mirror shots and fade in/fade outs,which reflect the sorrow that Louise uncovers.
Keeping Louise watching her dream couple by the window,the screenplay by Hossein and Dard (who also wrote the book it's based on) take a refreshingly unique corner with Louise's parents Arthur and Adeline Martin,who instead of being angry are shown as supportive of Louise's goals,and also desperate to pull her from the Film Noir pit she is being sliding into. Behaving as a couple with major "issues" between them,the writers display a superb skill in keeping the issues under wraps so that the viewer can feel the awkward atmosphere which Louise is in the midst of,that also gives the opening of the revelations a thunderous force,as Lousie learns about the tragic past of her dreamy couple.
Wisely deciding to not do a fake US accent, Robert Hossein gives a fantastic performance as Jess,whose casual,laid-back manner Hossein melts away to put Jess looking down to the pit of despair.Breaking egg shells the moment she enters, glamorous Michèle Morgan gives a terrific performance as Thelma,by making each downed drink and dance sway tear a shred of Thelma's glamour to unveil the raw sorrow laying underneath. Looking beautiful cleaning up the lush Art Deco Film Noir design, Perrette Pradier gives a fantastic performance as Louise,thanks to Pradier using all of her delicate features to clip Louise with a brittle fragility, as Louise finds herself drawn to the wretched.
The plot:
Since seeing them move from the US to France, Louise Martin has been fascinated by the activities of new neighbours Thelma and Jess Rooland,with Louise spending hours sitting by her window listening to the US records that they play.Wanting to know more about the Rooland's,Louise takes a deep breath and decides to ask the Rooland's if they would hire her as a maid.Getting hired as a maid,Louise's initial happiness gets wiped away,as she starts to lean of the events which led to the Rooland's leaving the US.
View on the film:
Backed by an echoing score from his dad André,co-writer/(along with Frédéric Dard) lead actor/director Robert Hossein & cinematographer Jacques Robin give the Rooland household a sparkling Art-Deco design,with the mix of light and shade subtly expressing the light exterior and the hard,closed-off interior of the Rooland's.Dabbing a moody narration on,Hossein & Robin get into a FNW swing which keeps the magnetic style focused on the pull that the Rooland's have on Louise,as surprisingly suggestive sex scenes and clouded in Film Noir train tracks show the rout that has set in for the Rooland's,that sets off ultra-stylised mirror shots and fade in/fade outs,which reflect the sorrow that Louise uncovers.
Keeping Louise watching her dream couple by the window,the screenplay by Hossein and Dard (who also wrote the book it's based on) take a refreshingly unique corner with Louise's parents Arthur and Adeline Martin,who instead of being angry are shown as supportive of Louise's goals,and also desperate to pull her from the Film Noir pit she is being sliding into. Behaving as a couple with major "issues" between them,the writers display a superb skill in keeping the issues under wraps so that the viewer can feel the awkward atmosphere which Louise is in the midst of,that also gives the opening of the revelations a thunderous force,as Lousie learns about the tragic past of her dreamy couple.
Wisely deciding to not do a fake US accent, Robert Hossein gives a fantastic performance as Jess,whose casual,laid-back manner Hossein melts away to put Jess looking down to the pit of despair.Breaking egg shells the moment she enters, glamorous Michèle Morgan gives a terrific performance as Thelma,by making each downed drink and dance sway tear a shred of Thelma's glamour to unveil the raw sorrow laying underneath. Looking beautiful cleaning up the lush Art Deco Film Noir design, Perrette Pradier gives a fantastic performance as Louise,thanks to Pradier using all of her delicate features to clip Louise with a brittle fragility, as Louise finds herself drawn to the wretched.