Frau im Fegefeuer

Imagine that Danielle Darrieux's character in "Abus de Confiance" (1938) has become ,twenty years later ,a famous brilliant lawyer.The comparison does not stop there:in the final scenes,Michèle Morgan's defense speech recalls Darrieux's first one in the 1938 work.Morgan rants about the perils of alcoholism,whereas she's a barfly herself.

"Pourquoi viens-tu si tard ?" is to rank among Decoin's worst efforts: -The first third is a not-so-funny comedy (despite Audiard's lines)involving the brave loyal lawyer and a paparazzi (Henri Vidal,Morgan's husband at the time who,sadly, would die the following year) who's also a lady killer.Both team up for an inquiry on wine traffickers ,a subject which could have been interesting but which the director sacrifices for the sake of his two stars ' affair.

-The second third is Decoin-trying-to-imitate-the-big-boys-of -the-new-wavelet:After yielding to a fifty-something,Morgan is eaten with remorse.She begins a long wandering in the streets ,drinking more than she should,and finally seeking refuge in a psychiatric hospital.

-In the last third,Morgan is back with a vengeance .In the courtroom of honor,she delivers a not very credible plea against booze which the audience does not want to hear anyway...

Only Michèle Morgan's beauty survives.