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Diabolique (1955)
"Les diaboliques" (original title)

Unrated  |   |  Drama, Horror, Thriller  |  21 November 1955 (USA)
8.2
Your rating:
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Ratings: 8.2/10 from 37,923 users  
Reviews: 147 user | 104 critic

The wife of a cruel headmaster and his mistress conspire to kill him, but after the murder is committed, his body disappears, and strange events begin to plague the two women.

Director:

(as H.G. Clouzot)

Writers:

(novel) (as Boileau) , (novel) (as Narcejac) , 4 more credits »
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Title: Diabolique (1955)

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Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
Christina Delassalle (as Vera Clouzot)
Paul Meurisse ...
...
Alfred Fichet, le commissaire
...
Plantiveau, le concierge
Thérèse Dorny ...
Mme. Herboux
Michel Serrault ...
M. Raymond, le surveillant
Georges Chamarat ...
Dr. Loisy
Robert Dalban ...
Le garagiste
Camille Guérini ...
Le photographe (as Camille Guerini)
Jacques Hilling ...
L'employé de la morgue
...
Le soldat
Aminda Montserrat ...
Madame Plantiveau
Jean Témerson ...
Le garçon d'hôtel (as Jean Temerson)
Jacques Varennes ...
M. Bridoux, professeur
Edit

Storyline

The wife and mistress of a sadistic boarding school headmaster plot to kill him. They drown him in the bathtub and dump the body in the school's filthy swimming pool... but when the pool is drained, the body has disappeared - and subsequent reported sightings of the headmaster slowly drive his 'killers' (and the audience) up the wall with almost unbearable suspense... Written by Michael Brooke <michael@everyman.demon.co.uk>

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

See it, be amazed at it, but... BE QUIET ABOUT IT! (original Finnish poster tagline) See more »

Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Certificate:

Unrated | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
Edit

Details

Country:

Language:

|

Release Date:

21 November 1955 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Diabolique  »

Company Credits

Production Co:

,  »
Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(A.R.T.E.C.)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

Véra Clouzot went up and down in spirits and when Henri-Georges Clouzot and Simone Signoret would begin to fight, she would "arbitrate or pour oil on troubled waters, depending on the state she was in." The three of them, not unnoticed by observers on the set, mirrored the three characters of the movie, with Henri-Georges Clouzot standing in for Michel. See more »

Goofs

When Christina drugs Michael on the bed she takes his shoes off, but when she and Nicole carry Michael to the bathtub his shoes are back on. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Plantiveau, le concierge: Headmaster!
Michel Delassalle: Yes.
Plantiveau, le concierge: Isn't it time I rang the bell?
Michel Delassalle: It's okay. I'll unload the car myself.
See more »

Crazy Credits

The movie ends with a text screen commenting on what the viewer has witnessed, and a request not to spoil the ending for those who are planning to see the movie. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Le diaboliche (1989) See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
It does what a horror movie should do
10 February 2006 | by (California) – See all my reviews

Scare the crap out of you!

I don't hand out many 10s. Some movies don't really require much thought or analysis. In the end all that matters is what happened to you when you first saw it.

I remember when I first saw this. Nothing scary at first, but the nastiness of the place and the people is effortlessly shown. And then the bad stuff starts to happen.

Ugliness...shock...suspense...shock...mystery...eeriness...awful shock.

I remember, though it must have been forty years ago, the climactic scenes with my neck hairs standing up, sweat on my face, clutching the theater armrests like I was in danger of falling, and finally realizing I was weeping- not tears of sadness, tears of helpless terror.

I envy anyone seeing this for the first time.


52 of 72 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

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Psycho or Les Diaboliques? zaxor99
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Not that my mind is in the gutter, but... thirteenpunkemos
Loved it...but... derbyStar16
Almost back in the Top 250 G1ant
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