Les blessures assassines

Even though "Murderous Maids", as a title, sounds like an American sexploitation B-flick, this film tells the true story of a pair of French sisters who serve as house maids, make incestuous love with each other, and kill their employer. Set in 1930's France, this biographical film spends considerable time developing the characters so when we see their shocking behavior it seems almost understandable. With critical plaudits aplenty, numerous awards, and sterling performances by the pair of leads (Testud & Parmentier), there's little doubt this is a quality film. However, given the unpleasantness of the issues, a somewhat tedious build to the climax, lots of maid stuff, and subtitles for non-French speakers, one should give this film due consideration before committing to the hour and a half watch. Will play best with foreign film buffs and others into serious psychodramas. (B)

Sorry, but historical accuracy, t & a and good sub-titles aren't enough. As a true-crime fan, I was intregued by this film's attempt to re-construct the lives of these two women as a way of trying to understand their crimes, but the heavy-handedness of the director combined with the sweaty, gross-out sexuality between the two sisters kind of spoiled it for me (There's a sex-scene combining incest, hairy armpits and crepes that I found utterly appalling). The "bad" characters were too overly bad, the "crazy" ones were overly crazy; by presenting this polarized view of life, the director robbed the film of exactly the ambiguity that made these crimes so shocking and difficult to understand. I do, however, give high marks to the scenes of the crimes themselves--which were effectivly shocking--and to the character of the maid's mother who was a multi-dimensional, interesting and surprising character.

I first saw an English version of this film many years ago with Joely Richardson playing Christine and the ever so cute Jodhi May as Léa. It was on by chance that I happened on the French version Les Blessures Assassines in a Blockbuster store. After watching it, I bought a copy. Though I liked the English version, very much, I was completely swept away by the French movie, and Sylvie Testud.

Testud, who plays Christine Papin in the film, has got to be one of the most stunning women in film today. Not only is she beautiful to look at, her acting is stellar. She takes you inside the mind of Christine Papin, whether it really happened that way or not. Also a great performance from Julie-Marie Parmentier who plays her younger sister Léa Papin.

I was simply riveted. I am now a HUGE fan of Sylvie Testud and having seen Le Château on cable, I have ordered La Captive on DVD.

Let us be very clear from the beginning, the person who came up with Murderous Maids could not have seen or understood the film. The Injured Assassins, or Injured Killers (assassins just sounds better to me) is much more evocative of the feel and content of the story. For this is not the story of a murder, but the story of two sisters who happen into murder.

First, Sylvie Testud is superb, restrained yet full of emotion, humble but full of pride, cold but full of love.

Many people have commented on the class warfare. The Jean Genet play takes that to an extreme. Some have been pulled in by the story of incest and illicit love between sisters. Denis walks deftly across these problems and presents a story that unfolds itself authentically and truly.

The mother in this movie did give me problems, she seems nicer than her effect on the girls, but remember who it is that puts them in the convent, and how she hides the secret of the oldest sister's pain using it only as a weapon to inflict damage upon Christine (Testud).

As the film came to the climax I briefly thought of Chabrol's Le Ceremonie, but that is another story, another film. Though depressing and slow, but not a second too long, this is a seriously important film for those who value the intensity with which cinema can bring the truth to light.

This is one of the first movies i saw when i moved to Paris 3 years ago, and after hundreds of other ones, i couldn't tell why it still keeps a special place in my heart. Maybe it's Sylvie Testud's acting, absolutely astonishing, or the disturbing end, i don't know. The fact is i didn't forget and that's why i'm writing it here. This is a film to be watched, but maybe not to be loved... I rated it 8/10, cause of the memory, and Sylvie Testud, whom from this time i don't miss any film she plays in.