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Diary of a Chambermaid

Original title: Le journal d'une femme de chambre
  • 19641964
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 37m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
9.1K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Jeanne Moreau in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
  • Crime
  • Drama
A sophisticated and self-assured woman from Paris joins a middle-class rural estate as a maid and causes quite a stir among the variously uptight, perverse and violent inhabitants.A sophisticated and self-assured woman from Paris joins a middle-class rural estate as a maid and causes quite a stir among the variously uptight, perverse and violent inhabitants.A sophisticated and self-assured woman from Paris joins a middle-class rural estate as a maid and causes quite a stir among the variously uptight, perverse and violent inhabitants.
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
9.1K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Luis Buñuel
  • Writers
    • Octave Mirbeau(based on the novel by)
    • Luis Buñuel(adaptation and dialogue)
    • Jean-Claude Carrière(adaptation and dialogue)
  • Stars
    • Jeanne Moreau
    • Georges Géret
    • Michel Piccoli
Top credits
  • Director
    • Luis Buñuel
  • Writers
    • Octave Mirbeau(based on the novel by)
    • Luis Buñuel(adaptation and dialogue)
    • Jean-Claude Carrière(adaptation and dialogue)
  • Stars
    • Jeanne Moreau
    • Georges Géret
    • Michel Piccoli
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 44User reviews
    • 44Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 2 nominations

    Photos20

    Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Jeanne Moreau in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Jeanne Moreau in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Jean-Claude Carrière in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Jeanne Moreau and Michel Piccoli in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Jeanne Moreau in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Luis Buñuel and Jeanne Moreau in Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
    Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Jeanne Moreau
    Jeanne Moreau
    • Céléstineas Céléstine
    Georges Géret
    Georges Géret
    • Josephas Joseph
    Michel Piccoli
    Michel Piccoli
    • M Monteilas M Monteil
    Daniel Ivernel
    Daniel Ivernel
    • M Maugeras M Mauger
    Françoise Lugagne
    Françoise Lugagne
    • Mme Monteilas Mme Monteil
    Muni
    Muni
    • Marianneas Marianne
    Jean Ozenne
    • M Rabouras M Rabour
    Joëlle Bernard
      Françoise Bertin
      Jean-Claude Carrière
      Jean-Claude Carrière
      • Le curéas Le curé
      Aline Bertrand
      • La voyageuseas La voyageuse
      Pierre Collet
      • Le voyageuras Le voyageur
      Michel Dacquin
        Madeleine Damien
        Madeleine Damien
        • La cuisinière des Monteilas La cuisinière des Monteil
        Marc Eyraud
        • Le secrétaire du commissaireas Le secrétaire du commissaire
        Jean Franval
        • Le facteuras Le facteur
        Gilberte Géniat
        Gilberte Géniat
        • Roseas Rose
        Gabriel Gobin
        Gabriel Gobin
        • Le brigadier qui vient arrêter Josephas Le brigadier qui vient arrêter Joseph
        • Director
          • Luis Buñuel
        • Writers
          • Octave Mirbeau(based on the novel by)
          • Luis Buñuel(adaptation and dialogue)
          • Jean-Claude Carrière(adaptation and dialogue)
        • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
        • All cast & crew

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        Storyline

        Edit
        Celestine, the chambermaid, has new job on the country. The Monteils, who she works for are a group of strange people. The wife is frigid, her husband is always hunting (both animals and women) and her father is a shoe-fetishist. Joseph, the farm-labourer is a fascist and sexually attracted to Celestine. Celestine settles herself and talks to the neighbour, an ex-officer, who likes damaging his neighbour's things. After the death of the old man, she quits her job, but because of the rape and murder of a child 'Little Claire' she decides to stay, believing that Joseph is the murderer. To get his confession she sleeps with him and promises to marry him. In spite of her engagement she fakes evidence to implicate him in the murder. He is arrested, but is released because the evidence is inconclusive. She marries the ex-officer and takes on a housewife role similar to that of Madame Monteil. —Stephan Eichenberg <eichenbe@fak-cbg.tu-muenchen.de>
        • murder
        • rape
        • pedophilia
        • frigidity
        • child rape
        • 337 more
        • Plot summary
        • Add synopsis
        • Genres
          • Crime
          • Drama
        • Certificate
          • Not Rated
        • Parents guide

        Did you know

        Edit
        • Trivia
          The demonstrating fascists shout "Vive Chiappe," a homage to the chief of the Parisian police who prohibited showing director Luis Buñuel's earlier film L'âge d'or (1930) after fascists destroyed the cinema where it was being shown.
        • Goofs
          At the train station, Célestine is supposed to be returning to Paris but she's waiting on the wrong side of the tracks: In one shot, one can clearly read "Direction Paris" on the other side.
        • Quotes

          Céléstine: It's strange, how the country always seems sad. - I guess, people don't have much fun here.

        • Connections
          Featured in Regarding Buñuel (2000)

        User reviews44

        Review
        Top review
        9/10
        Minor masterpiece? Quite the opposite!
        Luis Buñuel, the man considered Spain's finest filmmaker and revered master of surrealism by both critics and film historians, made a surprising change of style in the first of the series of masterpiece she did in France during his last years. Taking out his usual surrealist set-pieces, he adapts Octave Mirbeau's revered novel about social classes in a very straight-forward fashion. However, this does not mean the movie is bad as many may believe; quite the opposite, "Le Journal d'eune Femme de Chambre" is a perfect showcase of Buñuel's finest film-making style, ambiguous and stylish, like the master's own vision of life.

        The plot follows Celestine (Jeanne Moreau), an urban young woman moving to country in 30s France to work as a chambermaid for the Monteils, a rich family with a few dark secrets. As soon as she arrives, problems start as she tries to adapt to her new life with the bizarre Monteils. Between the constant advances of sexually insatiable Monsieur Monteil (Michel Piccoli), the always vigilant eye of his materialist wife (Françoise Lugagne) and the shoe fetish of old Monsieur Rabour (Jean Ozenne); Celestine makes her way through this collection of living portraits of the most bizarre human nature.

        With a plot like this it would easy to believe this is a movie where the high class is demonized and the poor sanctified, but this is not the case here. Buñuel makes sure to have an ambiguity in every character, even in Celestine herself. There is no black and white, just different shades of gray, in a way similar to the beautiful black & white photography he uses here.

        The photography is essential in this film; not only for aesthetic purposes, it represents the dark decadent days of 30s Europe, and the pessimism latent in both rich and poor people. As I wrote above, the shades of gray match perfectly the ambiguity of a group of characters with as many virtues as flaws. Buñuel and his cast manage to create believable and realistic characters.

        Jeanne Moreau gives a brilliant performance as Celestine. As the beautiful young city woman highly intelligent and not without aspirations, her character has enough room to let her shine, and she really makes the most of it. Equally brilliant is Georges Géret as Joseph, the tough gardener with fascist ideals that has a secret agenda. The rest of the cast is also very good and together with the witty script complete a superb character-driven movie.

        Buñuel's masterful direction creates a film that, while completely focused on the characters, is still filled with his usual symbolism. The edition and the camera-work are superb and way the camera seems to flow inside the house gives the film a voyeuristic feeling. No wonder why Buñuel consider it a very erotic film.

        While many people consider this movie as one of his "lesser works", I consider it to be quite underrated, as it proved that Buñuel was a master not only of surrealism, but of film-making in general. 9/10
        helpful•17
        6
        • jluis1984
        • Mar 16, 2006

        Details

        Edit
        • Release date
          • March 9, 1965 (United States)
        • Countries of origin
          • France
          • Italy
        • Language
          • French
        • Also known as
          • Dnevnik jedne sobarice
        • Filming locations
          • Milly-la-forêt, Essonne, France
        • Production companies
          • Ciné-Alliance
          • Filmsonor
          • Spéva Films
        • See more company credits at IMDbPro

        Box office

        Edit
        • Gross worldwide
          • $126
        See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

        Technical specs

        Edit
        • Runtime
          1 hour 37 minutes
        • Color
          • Black and White
        • Sound mix
          • Mono
        • Aspect ratio
          • 2.35 : 1

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