La Chambre indiscrète

Forlorn Frenchie Leslie Caron--27-years-old, unwed, pregnant and alone--takes a room in a British boarding house bustling with funny, mercurial people. Next-door to her is a black jazz musician, while downstairs is a handsome writer (who, naturally, hasn't sold anything in months). Down the hall from the writer is a lesbian shut-in, also a man-hungry landlady and two prostitutes. Bryan Forbes directed and adapted Lynne Reid Banks' book, taking careful steps to let this humanistic tale unfold as naturally as possible (when Caron upsets the horn-player, she talks so sensibly to him at his door that his initial anger suddenly seems unfounded and embarrassing). Certainly the dramatic and romantic predicaments which transpire are familiar, and Caron's insistence on keeping her condition a secret is a little bit nutty, no matter how afraid she is. However, the dignified film has a bittersweet tinge to it that draws one in, and the cast is uniformly strong (especially Caron, doing Oscar-nominated work). A few of the arguments become repetitive, though Forbes handles the characters sensitively. It's a happy/sad piece with a lovely message which says people change, they come and go, yet the rooms they once occupied carry on without them, renewed with fresh voices. Caron lost the Oscar to Patricia Neal in "Hud", but she won the BAFTA for Best British Actress. *** from ****

One of the best of the so-called "kitchen-sink" films, THE L-SHAPED ROOM is nearly perfect. The set decoration probably deserved an award for the way it evokes, with poetry, the incredibly realistic environment of a down-and-out London rooming house. As many commentators have noted, this film avoids clichés and gives us real-seeming characters played by gifted actors. There is not a single weak link in the cast, with Tom Bell, Avis Bunnage, Brock Peters, Cicely Courtneige among others providing so many memorable moments. At the heart of the film is Leslie Caron in an award-nominated performance that is not likely to be forgotten by anyone who sees it. This is a performance that elicits true feeling, done with a kind of invisible artistry, so it seems completely real. Bryan Forbes, one of Britain's finest directors of the period, paces the film well, relying on Caron and others to fill what may have been longueurs with true meaning. The only criticism is the use of the Brahms First Piano Concerto in the soundtrack. The surging romanticism, while appealing in itself, doesn't fit very well with the mood of the film, apart from a couple of quiet scenes. It's certainly not a big problem, only it seems an odd musical choice. A deeply affecting, unforgettable film.

I was a tender 14 years old in 1962, when I accompanied my mentor (my high school Spanish teacher) to an art house movie theater in Greenwich Village to see this film. My only previous encounter with Leslie Caron had been in the wonderfully entertaining film "Gigi". I must say, this two hour spectacle of unrelieved misery came as quite a shock to me. I left the theater thinking I had just seen the most depressing film I had ever seen in my life. And yet...I loved it! In fact, I felt very grown up at having survived it. This would not have been possible without the aid of the movie's soundtrack, Brahm's Piano Concerto No.1, which my astonished ears heard for the first time that evening. I've been in love with that piece--and with Brahms--ever since.

It's a shame this film has been all but forgotten. It's an excellent drama and character study, and features a career best performance from Leslie Caron, as an unwed pregnant French woman at a London boarding house. Though they all want her to get an abortion for various reasons, she refuses, and this forces them all to emerge from their shells and become a framework of friendship and love. The ending is sad, and just about perfect. The fact that time has neglected it is a true shame.

I saw this film first when I was twenty and, for me, it summed up all the anguish of being young, female and alone in London. The performances are magnificent, and at the time, I found Tom Bell to be quite attractive. I later went off him when he was successively portrayed as a seedy villainous type. The thing which completely mesmerised me at the time was the music (Brahms First Piano Concerto). I haven't read any other comments about the music and I am interested to know if anyone else was as affected by it as I was. It is, of course, a fabulous piece but this was my first introduction to it. I was a music student in 1962 but in common with many other music students of the time, not very knowledgeable. I immediately became very passionate about this piece.