Les enfants terribles (1950)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Jean-Pierre Melville
(more)

Writers:

Jean Cocteau (novel)
Jean Cocteau (adaptation)
(more)

Release Date:

28 July 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Elisabeth is very protective of her teenage brother Paul, who is injured in a snowball fight at school and has to rest in bed most of the time...

Plot Keywords:

Brother Sister Relationship | Dead Teen Couple | Gay Interest | Paris France | Poison

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Nicole Stéphane	...	Elisabeth
Edouard Dermithe	...	Paul
Renée Cosima	...	Dargelos / Agathe
Jacques Bernard	...	Gerard
Melvyn Martin	...	Michael
Maria Cyliakus	...	The Mother
Jean-Marie Robain	...	Headmaster
Maurice Revel	...	Doctor
Rachel Devirys
Adeline Aucoc	...	Mariette
Emile Mathys	...	Vice Principal
Roger Gaillard	...	Gerard's Uncle
Jean Cocteau	...	Narrator (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hélène Rémy

Directed by
Jean-Pierre Melville
Jean Cocteau		(uncredited)

Writing credits
Jean Cocteau		(novel)
Jean Cocteau		(adaptation and dialogue)
Jean-Pierre Melville		(writer) uncredited

Produced by
Jean-Pierre Melville	....	producer

Cinematography by
Henri Decaë

Film Editing by
Monique Bonnot

Production Design by
Emile Mathys
Jean-Pierre Melville

Costume Design by
Christian Dior		(dresses)

Makeup Department
Hagop Arakelian	....	makeup artist

Production Management
J. Boussard	....	assistant unit manager
J. Braley	....	production manager
Jean-Pierre Melville	....	production manager
Philip Schwob	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Michel Drach	....	trainee assistant director
Jacques Guymont	....	second assistant director
Claude Pinoteau	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Jacques Carrère	....	sound mixer
Maurice Dagonneau	....	boom operator
R. Durand	....	sound recordist
Jacques Gallois	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
André Dino	....	still photographer
J. Thibaudier	....	camera operator

Editorial Department
Colette Charbonneau	....	assistant editor
Claude Durand	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Paul Bonneau	....	musical director

Production Companies

• Melville Productions

Distributors

• Gaumont (1950) (France) (theatrical) (as Gaumont Distribution)
• Arthur Mayer-Edward Kingsley (1952) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Silver Cine (1993) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• ARTE (2001) (Germany) (TV) (subtitled)
• Criterion Collection, The (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Homescreen (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Moskwood Media (1998) (Netherlands) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Jean Cocteau's Les enfants terribles (France) (complete title)
The Strange Ones

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:18 (nf) | UK:12 (2000) | UK:X (1952) | UK:X (1976) (re-rating) | Spain:18

Filming Locations:

Ermenonville, Oise, France

Company:

Melville Productions

Trivia:

Jean Cocteau was allowed a day of shooting, when Jean-Pierre Melville wasn't feeling up to the mark. Cocteau was to follow Melville's instructions exactly or do nothing at all. Eight shots in all, which were supposed to be of a summer's day but were done in midwinter in the rain.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (2004) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Were You Smiling At Me

My two favorite French filmmakers collaborate and turn out a masterpiece

Jean Pierre Melville and Jean Cocteau are my two favorite filmmakers from France, but for me, they couldn't be more opposite in style. Melville is best known for minimalist, low-key, and realistic crime dramas such as "Le Samourai" and "Army of Shadows", whereas Jean Cocteau creates operatic and dreamlike fantasies such as "Beauty and the Beast". I was worried, despite my love for both auteurs, that Melville directing and Cocteau writing the screenplay wouldn't mesh at all. Fortunately, their collaboration turned out an absolutely gorgeous masterpiece. Jean Cocteau narrates the film in his typically poetic style. This adds a dreamlike layer to a film full of bizarre yet plausible situations, so it doesn't go against Melville's established sense of realism.

The direction by Melville is, unsurprisingly, superb. This was before he made his more acclaimed masterpieces, but its obvious he was very skilled from the start. The pacing is perfect without a single scene or shot gone to waste. The acting by the youths is uneven, which is the only slight flaw. Edouard Dermithe (who later starred in Cocteau's "Orpheus" and "The Testament of Dr. Orpheus") is too melodramatic and over-the-top, but the rest of the cast fares very well. Nicole Stéphane in particular is terrific as the cold sister fanatically devoted to her brother. Fortunately, Cocteau manages to avoid any incestuous undertones that a cheaper artist would feel compelled to attach to the material (and honestly, I was frightened that they'd be present here initially). I'm glad the great Criterion has released this film to DVD. Hopefully, it'll obtain the larger audience it deserves. (9/10)