Les yeux sans visage (1960)

A surgeon causes an accident which leaves his daughter disfigured, and goes to extremes to give her a new face.

Director:

Georges Franju

Writers:

Jean Redon (novel), Pierre Boileau (adaptation) (as Boileau-Narcejac)

Stars:

Pierre Brasseur, Alida Valli, Juliette Mayniel

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Pierre Brasseur	...	Docteur Génessier
Alida Valli	...	Louise
Juliette Mayniel	...	Edna Grüber
Alexandre Rignault	...	Inspector Parot
Béatrice Altariba	...	Paulette (as Beatrice Altariba)
Charles Blavette	...	L'homme de la fourrière (as Blavette)
Claude Brasseur	...	Un inspecteur
Michel Etcheverry	...	Le docteur Lherminier - médecin légiste / Forensic surgeon
Yvette Etiévant	...	La mère (as Yvette Etievent)
René Génin	...	Emile Tessot
Lucien Hubert	...	Un homme au cimetière
Marcel Pérès	...	Un homme au cimetière (as Marcel Pères)
François Guérin	...	Jacques Vernon (as Francois Guerin)
Edith Scob	...	Christiane Génessier

Storyline

After causing an accident that left his daughter Christiane severely disfigured, the brilliant surgeon Dr. Génessier works tirelessly to give the girl a new face. He does so however by kidnapping young women and attempting face transplants. He has been woefully unsuccessful to date. The doctor's world begins to collapse around him when his daughter realizes just what he has been doing.

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Plot Keywords:

captive woman | disfigured face | surgeon | experiment | face transplant | 

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Taglines:

Beautiful women were the victims of his FIENDISH FACIALS!!! [American retitled and dubbed version poster]

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Genres:

Drama | Horror

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

24 October 1962 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Horror Chamber of Dr. Faustus

Filming Locations:

River Marne, Noisiel, Seine-et-Marne, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$19,628, 2 November 2003, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$52,709, 30 November 2003

Company Credits

Production Co:

Champs-Élysées Productions,Lux Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The initial release of the film was met with negative reactions from film critics. One French critic stated the film was "in a minor genre and quite unworthy of his [director Georges Franju] abilities." Franju responded by saying that the film was his attempt to get the minor genre to be taken seriously.

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Goofs

In her first scene, Christiane says that her father has removed all the mirrors from the house. But when the doctor carries an unconscious Edna out of the parlor, their reflections can be seen a mirror beside the fireplace.

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Quotes

Doctor Génessier: The future, madame, is something we should have started on long ago.

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Connections

Referenced in The Dirties (2013)

User Reviews

Beautiful and hideous at once

This is one of those oddities that makes an interest in cinema worthwhile. Like the equally atmospheric Carnival of Souls, it was made by a director whose primary activity lay in documentaries, and can very much be regarded as a 'one-off'.

Franju's vision is at once beautiful and emetic: on the one hand, we have the stunning face of Edith Scob, the weird sight of her masked figure running into the night, the sequences which are held for longer than seems natural; on the other hand, arguably the most nauseating operation scenes committed to film (and somehow more unpleasant for being in black and white). The atmosphere is one of quiet poetry, but the juxtaposition with horror makes it unusual and effective. A connoisseur's delight. 9 out of 10. See it, if you can stomach it.