Dortoir des grandes (1953)

Director:

Henri Decoin

Writers:

François Chalais (writer)
Henri Decoin (writer)

Release Date:

4 February 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

Plot:

Detective Marco is assigned to investigate a murder that has occurred at an exclusive boarding school for adolescent girls...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Detective | Teacher | Interrogation | Game

Cast

Jean Marais	...	Inspecteur Désiré Marco
Françoise Arnoul	...	Aimée de La Capelle
Denise Grey	...	Mme. Hazard-Habran - La directrice
Jeanne Moreau	...	Julie - la serveuse
Noël Roquevert	...	Émile - L'aubergiste
Line Noro	...	Mlle. Brigitte Tournesac
Katherine Kath	...	Mlle Claude Persal
Louis de Funès	...	Le photographe Triboudot
Humberto Almazán	...	Da Costa
Pierre Morin	...	Inspecteur Broche
Jean Sylvère	...	Le receveur
Dany Carrel	...	Bettina de virmant
Nicole Gamma	...	Martine - Une pensionnaire (as Nicole Guézel)
Michèle Nancey	...	Michèle
Monique Arthur	...	Emma Lestandier (as Monique Artur)

Also Known As:

Girls' Dormitory
Inside a Girls' Dormitory (USA)

Runtime:

USA:95 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16

Company:

Compagnie Française Cinématographique (CFC)

Girls school

The last good adaptation of a Stanislas Andre Steeman novel ("18 Fantômes")for the screen,(Clouzot's ones were the best :"Quai Des Orfèvres" "L'Assassin Habite Au 21"),"Dortoir des Grandes " (=-big- girls dormitory) remains one of Henry Decoin's best movies in the fifties .

The director is at ease with a detective story which includes film noir touches and a lot of good humor.Jean Marais portrays a very handsome cop who investigates in a girls school where a murder was committed (one of the students).A bevy of gorgeous young girls makes his work worthwhile ,but they are not paragons of virtue ,as the straight headmistress (a wonderful Denise Grey) thinks they are.Don't they dress up as ghosts at night to scare the supervisor?And one of their pastimes the "tied -up" game -one of the girl learned in England ,in France we do not do such things of course!- consists of tying a girl to her bed :if she can free herself during the night,she wins!And what about the victim? Doesn't she own a movie-camera?And if she films the turkey waddling on the yard,she has also immortalized very bad things which happen behind the teachers' back.

A gallery of weirdos have detailed portraits in "Dortoir Des Grandes" : a female maths teacher who seems to be fond of girls (she says: "I couldn't kill her!I wouldn't destroy beauty"),a supervisor who's afraid of everything,a headmistress overtaken by events ;and in the village ,a photograph (Louis de Funès!)who likes to take photographs of the young ladies in swimsuit till something better comes along...Jeanne Moreau as a servant who is asked by the cop to spy on the victim's soon-to-be stepfather (this charming man has already tried to rape his stepdaughter).

This is an exciting thriller ,which displays a lot of dynamism ,with an excellent final scene which will remind old viewers of prize giving day.

Like this?try these....

"Les Disparus de Saint Agil " Christian -Jaque 1938

"Le Visiteur" Jean Dreville 1946