The title of this French film translates literally to The Most Beautiful Girl in the World. This lyrical cognomen somewhat obscures the film's intent: to expose the seamier side of the beauty-contest business. Five young lovelies are selected as finalists in a Parisian beauty pageant. Their breathless, starry-eyed excitement over this "honor" is soon compromised by the cynicism of the pageant's organizers, the lechery of various patrons and sponsors, and the overall fraudulence of the whole enterprise. Jacqueline Gautier delivers the film's best performance as a would-be actress whose experiences sour her for life on the notions of fame and fortune. La Plus Belle Fille du Monde has much in common with the like-vintage British seriocomedy Lady Godiva Rides Again.
by Hal Erickson
synopsis
