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Les dames du Bois de Boulogne

Original title: Les dames du bois de Boulogne
  • 1945
  • Tous publics
  • 1h 26m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
5K
YOUR RATING
Paul Bernard, María Casares, and Elina Labourdette in Les dames du Bois de Boulogne (1945)
DramaRomance

A society lady engineers a marriage between her lover and a cabaret dancer who is essentially a prostitute.A society lady engineers a marriage between her lover and a cabaret dancer who is essentially a prostitute.A society lady engineers a marriage between her lover and a cabaret dancer who is essentially a prostitute.

  • Director
    • Robert Bresson
  • Writers
    • Robert Bresson
    • Denis Diderot
    • Jean Cocteau
  • Stars
    • Paul Bernard
    • María Casares
    • Elina Labourdette
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.1/10
    5K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Robert Bresson
    • Writers
      • Robert Bresson
      • Denis Diderot
      • Jean Cocteau
    • Stars
      • Paul Bernard
      • María Casares
      • Elina Labourdette
    • 27User reviews
    • 39Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos19

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    Top cast14

    Edit
    Paul Bernard
    Paul Bernard
    • Jean
    María Casares
    María Casares
    • Hélène
    Elina Labourdette
    Elina Labourdette
    • Agnès
    Lucienne Bogaert
    Lucienne Bogaert
    • Mme. D
    Jean Marchat
    Jean Marchat
    • Jacques
    Yvette Etiévant
    Yvette Etiévant
    • La bonne
    Marcel Rouzé
    Bernard Lajarrige
    Bernard Lajarrige
    Lucy Lancy
    Nicole Regnault
    Emma Lyonel
    Marguerite de Morlaye
    Blanchette Brunoy
    Blanchette Brunoy
      Gilles Quéant
        • Director
          • Robert Bresson
        • Writers
          • Robert Bresson
          • Denis Diderot
          • Jean Cocteau
        • All cast & crew
        • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

        User reviews27

        7.15K
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        Featured reviews

        10Red-125

        "Hell hath no fury . . ."

        Les dames du Bois de Boulogne (1945) was written and directed by Robert Bresson. This movie is the second feature film by the great French director Bresson. It's the last film in which he used professional actors.

        In a story somewhat reminiscent of Les Liaisons Dangereuses, two wealthy, sophisticated lovers have a parting of the ways. Hélène, played by María Casares, senses that Jean (Paul Bernard) is losing interest in her. She suggests that they separate, and he agrees. The problem is that he agrees too readily. Hélène feigns indifference, but she plots revenge.

        The weapon of revenge is Agnès, played by Elina Labourdette. Agnès is a young cabaret dancer and (we understand) a prostitute. This is an ingénue role, and it's clear that Agnès is a serious dancer, forced into this role in order to support herself and her mother. The remainder of the story depicts the way the elaborate revenge scheme involving Agnès is carried out.

        Labourdette and Bernard are fine actors, and both had long careers in French cinema. However, the success of the movie comes from the extraordinary appearance and acting skills of María Casares. Casares, although Spanish, had an extremely successful career on both the French stage and screen. With her lithe figure and elegant clothing, she is every inch the French socialite. She is not beautiful in a typical cinematic way. Instead, with her triangular, almost feline face, and her narrowed eyes, she is fascinating. She dominates every scene in which she appears. No one questions her motive for revenge and her ability to achieve it. Bresson directs the film--and Casares--with the hand of a master.

        We saw this movie on the large screen at the excellent Dryden Theatre at Eastman House in Rochester, NY. The person who introduced the film said it was the only print in the United States at present. This print is owned by the French government, and only lent to selected institutions. A DVD is available, but may be of a somewhat different version. Still, even if the DVD isn't an ideal substitute for the print version, it's worth obtaining and seeing. This is one of the great films of French cinema. Don't miss it!
        7gavin6942

        The Old Bait and Switch

        A society lady (Maria Casarès) engineers a marriage between her lover (Paul Bernard) and a cabaret dancer (Élina Labourdette) who is essentially a prostitute.

        Not to say the acting isn't great or the direction isn't wonderful... because they both are. But this really comes down to a great script. This is the sort of bait and switch comedy that the French were great at. Diderot, Voltaire, Beaumarchais... there is a music to their writing that I have never found in any other nation's literature.

        This translates fairly well to the screen, and is a great farce about social standing and romance. Now, whether Agnes is a prostitute or not, I don't know. Although she clearly was in the original story, some say she is not in the film. Regardless, the humor of the comedy remains the same.
        8robert-temple-1

        Bresson's second film, a moody classical set piece

        Just after the Nazis left, Robert Bresson directed this, his second film. The story is an updated version of a tale entitled 'Jacques le Fataliste' by Denis Diderot (1713-1784), the famous radical thinker and encyclopaedist of the French Enlightenment era. Surprisingly enough, Diderot's novels and stories have been filmed 22 times between 1922 and 2013, and this one was filmed again in both 1967 and 2005. The reference to the Bois de Boulogne is because that used to be the traditional haunt of better class prostitutes. This film is a surprisingly formal, classical film for someone like Bresson. It is primarily notable for the frighteningly intense performance by Maria Casares as a beautiful woman scorned, who applies all of her energies to destroying the lover who has jilted her. It is a horrid story of relentless, maniacal feminine vengeance. Dialogue for the film was written by Jean Cocteau. Much of the film consists of recurring shots of the smouldering gaze of Casares, who scorches the viewer, the camera, the screen, and everything and everyone in sight with her sinister, scheming hatred and determination to obtain revenge. She would have been better off going for a walk in the Bois and calming down.
        9sanzo-2

        Watch this film.

        This film shows Bresson before he turned to using nonprofessional actors. But it's still Bresson in its austerity and economy. He demonstrates the vapidity and luxury of the idle class without overwhelming us with the accouterments. Skillfully, he moves forward the story of a scheming, jealous, vengeful society woman whose own tricks have blown up in her face.

        One of your commenters complained the film was boring, but that wasn't my experience. I will grant that, if you're looking for explosions,90-degree plot turns, or uproarious comedy, you will certainly be disappointed. On the other hand, if you enjoy watching and hearing a master look into a soulless bosom, and if you enjoy sitting back while a serious artist shows us how to advance a simple but serious plot about serious people, you'll enjoy Dames.
        8dbdumonteil

        The film belongs to Maria Casarès.

        Till 1950,Robert Bresson used professional actors.This explains why those previous movies are much more accessible -and thus generally overlooked by the "true" RB connoisseurs ,this naive audience who is still thinking that French cinema did begin with him;this mindless belief was fueled by the director himself whose contempt for his colleagues was notorious ...

        And like it or not,It's one of his colleagues,Marcel Carné ,who provided Bresson with his star Maria Casarès,who was featured in the absolute chef-d'oeuvre of our French cinema "Les Enfants Du Paradis" .She played the part of Natalie and was not overshadowed by Arletty,which was quite a feat!

        In "les Dames...",Casares was extraordinary: in her last scenes ,when she spits her hate ,her contempt and when she savors her vengeance as she says :"You've married a hooker! I had you marry a hooker!" ,she mesmerizes her audience.After her lover had left her,she really became a spider spinning her web in which the two women and her ex would be caught up.

        Jean Cocteau wrote the dialog.Maria Casarès would become one of his favorite actresses:"Orphée" and "Le Testament d'Orphée".

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        Storyline

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        Did you know

        Edit
        • Trivia
          It is a modern adaptation of a section of Denis Diderot's Jacques the Fatalist (1796).
        • Goofs
          In the meeting between Hélène and Jean in which they tell each other that there is no more love between the two, the clock on the mantelpiece jumps from ten to twelve to ten past twelve within seconds.
        • Quotes

          Jacques: There's no such thing as love, only proofs of love.

        • Alternate versions
          The German dubbed version is about two minutes shorter, due to several cuts in the final scenes. The channel Arte screened the complete movie with the missing scenes subtitled.
        • Connections
          Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: La monnaie de l'absolu (1999)

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        FAQ

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        Details

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        • Release date
          • September 21, 1945 (France)
        • Country of origin
          • France
        • Language
          • French
        • Also known as
          • The Ladies of the Bois de Boulogne
        • Filming locations
          • Studios Eclair, Epinay-sur-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, France(Studio)
        • Production company
          • Les Films Raoul Ploquin
        • See more company credits at IMDbPro

        Tech specs

        Edit
        • Runtime
          1 hour 26 minutes
        • Color
          • Black and White
        • Aspect ratio
          • 1.37 : 1

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        Paul Bernard, María Casares, and Elina Labourdette in Les dames du Bois de Boulogne (1945)
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