Three Murderesses (1959)

Julien turns up at one of his former girlfriends' wedding ;she marries an "old man" (32).But the newly wed Agathe does not want to give the hunk up .

Director:

Michel Boisrond

Writers:

Michel Boisrond (screenplay and dialogue), Sophie Catala (novel)

Stars:

Alain Delon, Mylène Demongeot, Pascale Petit

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alain Delon	...	Julien Fenal
Mylène Demongeot	...	Sabine
Pascale Petit	...	Agathe
Jacqueline Sassard	...	Hélène Maroni
Noël Roquevert	...	Edouard Maroni, Helene's father
André Luguet	...	M Fenal, Julien's father
Pierre Mondy	...	André, Agathe's Husband
Simone Renant	...	Marguerite Maroni, Helene's mother
Monique Mélinand	...	Mme Fenal, Julien's mother
Héléna Manson	...	Mother Superior
Anita Ruff	...	Anita Pérez
Albert Médina	...	M Courcel, Agathe's father
Adrienne Servantie	...	Mme Courcel, Agathe's mother
Magdeleine Bérubet	...	Sister Marguerite
Géo Valdy	...	L'Examinateur

Storyline

Julien turns up at one of his former girlfriends' wedding; she is marrying an "old man". But the newly wed Agathe does not want to give up this hunk. She has to compete with sexy Sabine and gorgeous Helene, who has just been expelled from her sectarian school. Julien ,who's also got a fiancee, behaves like a boor with the threesome. Sick and tired of this playboy's attitude, the women dream of murder. They decide to act and they steal poison from Agathe's father's pharmacy.

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Plot Keywords:

alliteration in title | two word title | male objectification | bare chested male | man in swimsuit | 

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Taglines:

3 Man-Hungry Girls Who Wanted to Kill the Same Man...With Love!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

11 February 1959 (France)

Also Known As:

Three Murderesses

Company Credits

Production Co:

Euro International Film (EIA), Transcontinental Films S.A.

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in My Bride Is a Mermaid: Faibles Femmes (2007)

User Reviews

The indiscreet charm of the bourgeoisie

A cursory look at Michel Boisron's filmography and you know what you are going to watch:it's pure commercial stuff ,sometimes entertaining ("Le Chemin Des Ecoliers").Always jumping on the bandwagon,he made a "yeah yeah" movie ("Cherchez L'Idole" ),a spy thriller in the wake of James Bond ("Atout Coeur A Tokyo Pour OSS 117"),a fairy tale after Demy's "Peau D' Ane " ("Le Petit Poucet),and so on....

The Office Catholique Du Cinema advised their flock against this movie which lauded degenerate ways, free love,and above all ,who laughed at the sisters ,their school and their obsolete methods and their religious upbringing: the scenes in the sectary school are nevertheless the funniest in the whole movie ,with absolutely gorgeous Sassard (by far ,my favorite girl) who braids her hair before letting it hang down !Her "cousin"'s visit under a nun's watchful eye ,her being expelled from this place where you are carefully taught ,because ,as father Roquevert thinks ,she laughed in the chapel (you cannot be always crying in the chapel,can you?)

At first sight ,it appears as a woman's lib manifesto as well as a defiant attitude against a stilted society .But it is not so .Boisrond's movies- see also "Comment Epouser Un Premier Ministre " or "La Leçon Particulière" - may lampoon or challenge the establishment ,but they do it cowardly.All his characters move in wealthy milieus :Julien's father ,himself a womanizer ,owns a recording studio,Agathe's father is a chemist ,Helene 's folks are famous virtuoso musicians (Roquevert cast against type is hilarious).And if Julien is cynical ,if he may scandalize, he will take his exams and he will do his military service (1959 ,it was Algeria war ,all the same).The last sequence ,which takes place in a jail ,epitomizes reaction: a young soldier in uniform who has some kind of church wedding,everything to reassure the God - fearing and the right- thinking.

As for the girls' "crime" ,it is too gentle,devoid of black humor ;we are in a sanitized world ;even the dreamlike scenes suffer from a lack of imagination .

Delon's career really took off with Clement's"Plein Soleil" aka "purple noon" which was fortunately around the corner.Sassard's abruptly ended with Chabrol's "Les Biches";too bad her beauty did not grace the screens after 1968.

Two Paul Anka songs (including his big hit " Diana" ) are heard:the connection with the plot escapes me,I fear.