IMDb > Les enfants terribles (1950)
Les enfants terribles
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Les enfants terribles (1950) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   999 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Jean Cocteau (novel)
Jean Cocteau (adaptation)
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for Les enfants terribles on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
28 July 1952 (USA) more
Genre:
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... more | add synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. more
User Reviews:
Strange and at times unnerving masterpiece, French style. more (11 total)

Cast

  (in credits order)
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
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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 CompaniesDistributors
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Jean Cocteau's Les enfants terribles (France) (complete title)
The Strange Ones
Copiii teribili (Romania) [ro]
Die schrecklichen Kinder (West Germany) [de]
I ragazzi terribili (Italy) [it]
Los niños terribles (Spain) [es]
more
Runtime:
105 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
West Germany:18 (nf) | UK:12 (2000) | UK:X (1952) | UK:X (1976) (re-rating) | Australia:PG | Spain:18
Filming Locations:

Fun Stuff

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. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (2004) (VG) more
Soundtrack:
Concerto in A minor for 2 violins and string orchestra (Opus 3, No. 8; RV 522) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
2 out of 3 people found the following review useful.
Strange and at times unnerving masterpiece, French style., 2 April 2009
7/10
Author: Ralph Ignacio Litardo (lancaster@fibertel.com.ar) from Capital, Buenos Aires, Argentina

It took time to build, but when things got really rolling, I felt things could not happen otherwise. The settings and actresses are truly fine. The musical score, simple and obsessive, is perfect for this almost naive plot of youth angst "avant la lettre". The final monologue of Elizabeth about "how we have to make our lives ugly, unlivable" is worth many bad French Literature we "ought to read".

While I cannot say it has any meaning, the "form" of this movie is so good one just forgets. I agree with Amazon's Tom Keogh that it may be "a harbinger of pop narcissism", I thought exactly the same. Some images are beautiful, like Liz moving in the garden with barren trees and a cloudy sky, prodding elegantly in a house that doesn't belong to her.

Doug Anderson on Amazon wrote a good summary and a great line: "the unwholesomeness of the bond is immediately apparent" "little blonde fascist versions of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton-". The thread he and another reviewer have is interesting. I pinch from there my end line: "In film the "how" is everything".

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Les enfants terribles (1950)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Brilliant dixon-20
Dermithe too old? tcsung
The Song that Michael sings in this film...? mackjay2
Music question - Bach? levi-elijah
DVD? xbhaskarx
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