Le trio infernal (1974)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Francis Girod

Writers:

Solange Fasquelle (novel)
Francis Girod (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

22 May 1974 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Horror

Plot Keywords:

Paris | Murder | Gang | Corps | Fraud

Cast

Michel Piccoli	...	Georges Sarret
Romy Schneider	...	Philomena Schmidt
Mascha Gonska	...	Catherine Schmidt
Philippe Brizard	...	Chambon
Jean Rigaux	...	Villette
Monica Fiorentini	...	Magali
Luigi Zerbinati
Hubert Deschamps	...	Detreuil
Monique Tarbès	...	Nurse
Andréa Ferréol	...	Noemie
Francis Claude	...	Doctor
Pierre Dac	...	Insurance doctor
Jean-Pierre Honoré
Henri Piccoli
Martine Ferrière
Nicole Chomo
Isabelle Lebel
Adolfo Geri
Fany Renan
Rolph Spath
Renata Zamengo
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Papinou	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Francis Girod

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Solange Fasquelle		novel
Francis Girod		writer
Jacques Rouffio		writer

Produced by
Raymond Danon	....	producer
Jacques Dorfmann	....	producer
Wolfdieter von Stein	....	producer

Original Music by
Ennio Morricone

Cinematography by
Andréas Winding

Film Editing by
Claude Barrois

Production Design by
Jean-Jacques Caziot

Costume Design by
Jacques Fonteray

Production Companies

• Belstar Productions
• Film 66 - Fox Europe Paris
• Lira Films
• Oceania Produzioni Internazionali Cinematografiche
• TIT Filmproduktion GmbH

Distributors

• Connoisseur Video
• New Line Cinema (USA) (subtitled)

Also Known As:

The Infernal Trio
Trio Infernal (West Germany)
Trio infernale (Italy)

Runtime:

France:107 min | Germany:84 min (cut)

Country:

France | West Germany | Italy

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Finland:(Banned) (1975) | Sweden:15 | West Germany:18 | Germany:16 (heavily cut) | West Germany:(Banned) | Iceland:16 | Norway:(Banned) (1975-2003) (cinema release) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Paris, France

Company:

Belstar Productions

The discreet harm of the bourgeoisie.

There was an outcry when "le trio infernal" was released in 1974;the subject was nefarious.Sometimes recalling Leonard Kastle's incomparable "the honeymoon killers"(1969),it depicted the crimes of a Lawyer(Piccoli),his lover (Schneider),and the lover's young sister. Most horrible scene:to get rid of one of their victims' dead body,they dissolve it in sulphuric acid!The director insists on "preparations".We attend the whole thing,the director goes as far as showing the "heroes",emptying the bath tub with pails ,a gas mask on the face.

Enough was enough for the 1974 audience.The worst was Romy Schneider's presence.For a lot of people,she remained the lovely empress Sissi,all smile.She had actually showed this character's darker side in Visconti's "Ludwig II"(1973).The audience could accept her politically correct Sautet efforts-"les choses de la vie"1969,"César et Rosalie",1972)or the academic Granier-Deferre's "le train" (1972),but her portrayal of an abject woman playing with trash was too much for them.

A gruesome farce,it's also a caricature of a selfish society,with its religion the money Goddess.Retro style adds to the harm(sorry,charm)of this bourgeois wholesale massacre .