Les enfants terribles (1950)

Director:

Jean-Pierre Melville

Writers:

Jean Cocteau (novel)
Jean Cocteau (adaptation)

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

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]

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 (1976) (re-rating) | UK:X (1952) | Australia:PG | 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)