Toi... le venin

A man looks for the mysterious young lady who tried to crush him one evening

One night, while he promenades in the streets of Nice, Victor Menda is accosted by a fair young lady in the steering wheel of Cadillac. The attractive creature, whose face stays in the shadow, invites Victor to rise, give herself fervently to him then stick him the cannon of a revolver on the temple and order him to get off. While he goes away, she tries to crush him. Victor just escapes death. Furious, he has the reflex to note the number of the car. A fast inquiry leads him around a big house where live two very resembling sisters, both fair.

WHEN I first saw this film, in London, in 1958, I was bowled over. I had never seen a film like this before. It had a strange, hypnotic effect, quite unlike the films that I had seen previously and it left a lasting impact.

I believe that Odile Versios & Marina Vlady are sisters, if not twins. Certainly the interaction is amazing in its power to influence the viewer.

If this has been converted to DVD - in Region 2 format - and in the original French language, I would love to hear about it & where it can be purchased.

A gripping start (accurately described by the lurid English title - "Nude in a White Car") for an intriguing, unpretentious mystery: it introduces three characters, it makes clear that one of the two is lying, and it puts you in the place of the third, trying to figure out which one. In an inspired bit of casting, real-life sisters Odile Versois and Marina Vlady, who bear a striking resemblance to each other, are cast as (half) sisters in the movie as well, which produces a Hitchcockian "blurring the lines" effect. **1/2 out of 4.

I first saw this film in 1959 at age 13 and it made quite an impression. The image of a blonde beauty, bare-breasted in a car in the shadows of the night, was simply too much and it stayed in my mind forever. At the advent of the home video industry, a re-encounter with the nasty little film seemed possible but I had to wait three decades for it to become true. I am happy to report that thanks to the Gaumont folks in France, "Toi, le venin" came out in style, a magnificent print in black & white, in Blu-ray no less. The edition includes an original trailer and an interview with Marina Vlady talking about her character in the movie. Often, films that impressed us when young are as huge disappointment when we see them as adults. Thankfully this is not the case with "Toi, le venin" since, apart from the bare-breasted blonde, it is a fine film that will maintain your attention from beginning to end. Don´t miss it! They don´t make movies like this anymore.

This is much better than i expected. A very good mystery/drama movie which didn't had an open ending like so many mystery movies. On the contrary, every question here was answered. It kept me guessing until the end, and this is not something common for a 1958 movie, i mean, movies of this era were not so complicated and you can easily guess what is happening, especially if you have watched thousands of movies. I am not saying it is brilliant neither mindblowing. This is clever, not just enjoyable but exciting, nice music and cinematography, very good actors and most of all, these women are really beautiful :)

Easy to follow, not convoluted, kinda "light". I am so glad i found it.