Mademoiselle Fifi

This is a very interesting film directed by a very famous Hollywood Director, Robert Wise,"The Sound of Music","West Side Story" and many other famous films. This is a gem of a 1944 film starring Simone Simon, (Elizabeth Bousset),"The Curse of the Cat People" who plays the role of a young French Laundress who shares a coach ride during the Franco-Prussian War with some very important social superiors. These so called social superiors thought themselves better than Elizabeth, however, when they forgot to bring any food supplies on their journey, she furnished them with chicken she had prepared for herself and things changed. Kurt Kreuger, (Lt. Von Eyrick) is a Prussian soldier who tries to hit on Elizabeth and stops all the travelers from going on their journey until poor Elizabeth complies with his wishes. Jason Roboards,Sr., (Wholesaler in Wines) gave a great supporting role along with John Emery, (Jean Cornudet) who comes to the aid of Elizabeth along with a Priest who will not ring the church bells of his Parish in defiance of the Prussian Generals. Great Classic Film.

A minor movie set at the end of the 19th century in France, during the Prusian occupation. It's an adaptation from a Guy de Maupassant that deals with the lack of ideals in the upper classes and how the poor are the ones who end up making sacrifices for their country (and for those rich people who has no ideals).

What's more attractive about "Madamemoiselle Fifi" is the presence of the so beautiful and sexy Simone Simon. Apart from that it's just a pleasant product, one of the first that filmed the prestigious director Robert Wise.

*My rate: 5/10

There is a good film waiting to be made out of de Maupassant's story, but this isn't it. (Stagecoach isn't either). We can understand it isn't Lewton and Wise's fault, it's just that the censorship wouldn't allow it to be done properly then.

Thus, the central character gets turned into a laundress, and the climax comes when she... HAS DINNER with the sadistic Prussian officer!! (in the story, she was shunned by her fellow passengers for being a hooker, then she saves the day by going to bed with him)).

Modern directors like Agnieszka Holland or M.L. Bemberg could make a really great movie out of this, but 1940's America was just not the place.

A rare non-horror effort from producer Val Lewton, this is a period film about a patriotic laundress during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870. Lewton brought along Cat People star Simone Simon and director Robert Wise (who would do two horror films for Lewton, including Curse of the Cat People with Simon). Despite the setting, it's very obviously meant to be about Nazi-occupied France. It's also pretty clear Simon's character was meant to be a prostitute but the Code wouldn't allow that. The way the upper class types look down on her and the stuff about the German officer wanting to "dine" with her and her steadfast refusal over something so minor is indicative that more is going on here than the script is allowed to say outright. Simone's gorgeous as ever. I love her adorable accent. She handles herself well in this often unexciting costumer. The rest of the cast is fine, with Kurt Kreuger a standout as the slimy villain (and the title character). It's a beautiful-looking film with cinematography by Harry Wild. Lewton fans might like to take a look at it but don't expect anything like his atmospheric horror films.

This is a World War II film set in France during the Franco-Prussian War which in real life was over in 6 months. This was not a global conflict with the soldiers of many nations trying to rescue France from invaders. The Germans occupied about a quarter to a third of France and in their stay never put France through the depradations of the 1940s. In fact their stay was climaxed by the crowning of Wilhelm I Emperor(Kaiser) of Germany at Versailles.

But that's not the message Hollywood was sending in those years. Simone Simon becomes the object of the affection of Prussian officer Kurt Kruger.. In the end she does her patriotic duty and so does John Emery in striking a blow for the resistance which there really wasn't any in that war.

The other bone of contention was the silence of the town church bell which for some reason has the occupying Prussians with their backs up. it rings, but at a price for the Prussians.

The cast does well by this historical claptrap in Mademoiselle Fifi.