Les Amants Maudits (1952)
Directed by Willy Rozier
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Synopsis by Hal Erickson
Les Amants Maudits was based on the short, unhappy life of a notorious French "impulse killer" known as Pierre the Madman. Robert Berri plays Pierre, while Daniele Roy is the pathetic Jackie, who dreams of being Bonnie to someone's Clyde. A humble bartender, Pierre tries to impress Jackie with tales of his imaginary crimes. She laughs in his face, leading to devastating consequences. The story is filmed in semi-documentary fashion, a la Dragnet. It is hard to say whether Les Amants Maudits proved influential to the nouvelle vague movement, though it does bear resemblances to certain later works by Jean Luc-Godard and other New Wave filmmakers.