...And God Created Woman (1956)

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

Director:

Roger Vadim (as R. Vadim)

Writers:

Roger Vadim (original scenario) (as R. Vadim), Raoul Lévy (original scenario) (as R. Lévy)

Stars:

Brigitte Bardot, Curd Jürgens, Jean-Louis Trintignant

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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)
Marie Glory	...	Mme. Tardieu (as Mary Glory)
Georges Poujouly	...	Christian Tardieu

Storyline

Antoine promises to take the orphaned Juliette away from St. Tropez after a party where she has wandered onto the yacht of the urbane Eric. But in the morning the bus and Antoine zip by Juliette's stop and she runs into the field to capture the rabbit she set free moments before. About to be sent back to the orphanage by her foster mother, she identifies with the rabbit. Antoine's younger brother Michel comes to Juliette's rescue with a marriage proposal and she accepts. Eric wants the brothers' shipyard as a casino site and brings Antoine back to St. Tropez. Life gets complicated.

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Plot Keywords:

breasts | adulterous wife | sexy woman | adultery | blonde | 

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Taglines:

One of the Most Contoversial, Uninhibited, Eye Brow-Lifting Film Events in Years!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Was condemned by the Catholic Church's Legion of Decency within months after the Baby Doll (1956) boycott and caused a huge uproar in the United States for its sexual content.

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Quotes

Eric Carradine: What's gotten into you?
Juliete Hardy: Can't you see I'm having fun?
Eric Carradine: Come on. That's enough.
Juliete Hardy: Do you know a place where people just want to dance and laugh?
Eric Carradine: I'll take you there.
Juliete Hardy: Is it far away?
Eric Carradine: Halfway across the world.
Juliete Hardy: I'd like to stop thinking completely.

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Connections

Featured in Biography: Doris Day: It's Magic (1998)

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Soundtracks

Dis-moi Quelque Chose de Gentil
Music by Paul Misraki
Lyrics by André Hornez
Performed by Solange Berry

User Reviews

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.

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French English

Release Date:

21 October 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

...And God Created Woman

Filming Locations:

Port de la Ponche, Saint-Tropez, Var, France

Box Office

Budget:

$300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cocinor, Iéna Productions, Union Cinématographique Lyonnaise (UCIL)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1