Olivia

This film, based on Dorothy Bussy's short novel, appeared on the screens when homosexuality was almost as taboo in the cinema as everywhere else in our so called civilized world. But at least France made it-and by a great female director who understood Sartre's play 'Huis Clos' better than almost any stage director. There is a lesbian character in 'Huis Clos' and arguably the lesbianism is more explicit in Sartre's play than in 'Olivia'. But ... Hell is going down in a lift to Hell? Even Sartre did not think of that incredible detail!

I am giving away no spoilers in this review, only to urge those who can, to see this film. It is set in a girl's school. Although no one could classify Simone Simon straight out of 'La Ronde' as a girl-they are young women. The acting is superb all round, and the images and dialogue perfect.

So why is this film hidden away? Why no DVD and only a long lost VHS tape to be found if you are lucky on Ebay? I have the video and have treasured it for years. And why the dreadful title 'The Pit of Loneliness', except to tempt and to suggest to people that this is all about 'perversion'? Trust America to do that at the height of homophobia back in the early 1950s! England at least released it with the title 'Olivia' but the film soon disappeared, lost in double feature programmes.

Such stark times should be behind us, but for some reason this classic is not deemed worthy of respect. There are no sexual acts in the film. It is an examination of feelings. In 2019 it should no longer be put into the darkest corner of cinema history. Perhaps, after all, these are still stark times.

Marie-Claire Olivia arrives at a girl's school outside Paris, fresh from London. It's near the end of the 19th Century. There's good food, the grounds are magnificent, and the headmistress, Edwige Feuillère, is a lovely woman who wants her girls to be happy, and reads her lessons in literature in a very dramatic manner. The food is excellent, the kitchen supervised by Yvonne de Bray; she may rattle on foolishly, but her beef stew is delicious.

Yet there is something odd about the school. It's not there are factions. That seems obligatory in any movie about schoolgirls. It's the way the factions are set up. Is one under the spell of Mme Feuillère, or of Mlle Simone Simon, with her migraines and her weakness and self-indulgence? As the movie continues, the sexual components of these factions become more apparent.... as does the frisson between the two arch-rivals.

The movie is populated almost entirely by women. True, there are three investigators towards the end, disapproving and censorious; also an early appearance by Philippe Noiret; his first had been in GIGI, directed by Jacqueline Audry, also the director of this film. Through 1960 he appeared without a credit in four films; one of the others was an Agnes Varda feature.

Noiret, however, is mere window dressing for a scene. In sum, this looks like the same impulse as THE WOMEN, except here the men are largely abstract, annoying outsiders.

'Olivia (1951)' is a French drama about a teenager who arrives at an all-girls school and soon finds herself besotted with one of its alluring headteachers. One of the earliest French films to portray lesbianism (which surely means it's one of the earliest overall films to portray lesbianism, right?), the film does feel fairly revelatory in its open presentation of what would surely have been considered taboo way back then (and still isn't as accepted as it should be). It almost takes place in an alternate reality where everyone's a lesbian, and in that regard it's pretty great. It never judges its characters for their same-sex attraction, never depicts them questioning their true feelings or struggling with their apparent morality, never shows society shunning them for their desires. Really, the only thing stopping me from singing its praises more is the fact that it unfortunately falls into the trap of depicting an adult teacher reciprocating feelings for her teenage students, an icky dynamic that taints the waters of otherwise refreshingly near-perfect LGBT+ representation. The flick doesn't necessarily condone teacher-student/ adult-child relationships, depicting the headteacher struggling between giving into her temptation and restraining herself from it, but it doesn't outright condemn them, either. In some ways, it provides a nuanced look at a very flawed individual; any assertions that what's happening is wrong are laid squarely upon the adult's inability to clearly reject her students' advances, rather than on the students for developing their infatuations (which, in many ways, seem to be fostered thanks to the odd competition that occurs between the two headteachers - who are partners, by the way - and their ego-driven need to be loved by those in their charge). However, I'm just not a fan of same-sex attraction being used in scenarios in which attraction in general simply isn't appropriate, as it reinforces the erroneous yet wide-spread notion that members of the LGBT+ community are predators who will ultimately harm children in one way or another. The fact that this seventy-four-year-old film's flawed approach is better than that of many much more recent efforts isn't so much commendable as it is depressing, as we really ought to be a lot better at this by now. Still, given its age and typically non-judgmental approach, I have to give it praise where it deserves it. The feature is also consistently compelling, with delightfully dreamy cinematography and relatively fully-drawn characters. It's also surprisingly funny on occasion thanks to a comedic side character whose entire schtick is that she has a big appetite. It's ultimately an engaging and well-made effort that's a bit uncomfortable due to its age-gap dynamics, but is still an interesting piece of LGBT+ media history which is much more progressive than you may expect.

I think this is was one of the best movies from the 50's. Is it touching to see the emotions in Olivia's face when she says under tears to her teacher that she loves her and later begins to cry in Julie's office when she calls her affection a "schimäre". The supporting characters are also excellent like the very strict but attractive Miss Riesener or the former pupil Laura, another beauty. I must also mention the dramatic wonderful film music.

There are two pivotal women in this film, and it's not going to be easy for the young and impressionable "Olivia" (Marie-Claire Olivia) to decide in which camp to put her feet! She is an English lass who has arrived at a posh finishing school in France where she is welcomed by the school's charismatic and enigmatic "Miss Julie" (Edwige Feuillère) with whom she forms an instant attachment. Then there's the more cutely manipulative "Miss Cara" (Simone Simon) who has some sort undefined illness that sees half the school constantly pampering her and indulging her every need. She, too, is fascinated by their tutor and doesn't take at all kindly to the idea of this visiting, foreign, interloper... To put it mildly there's now an enjoyable frisson developing that has a very slight sexual change to it, too, as the women square up nicely in the most dignified and ladylike of fashions of course. Sure, there are some coming of age elements to the plot, but actually it's the rather subtly played games of jealousy that I liked here. There are few male characters to clutter up the toxicity of the dynamic of longing, yearning and back-stabbing and it proves that some clever writing and decent photography can convey tension and raw desire far more potently than nudity and profanity ever could. Ninety minutes flies by, and it's worth a watch.