Diabolique (The Criterion Collection) Spine #35)
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Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot
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Sales Rank: 34869
Criterion
Released: 1999-01-26
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Media: DVD
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Product Description
A sadistic schoolmaster is murdered by his wife and mistress, but when his body cannot be found they are terrorized by his seeming presence everywhere
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Legend has it that Henri-Georges Clouzot beat out Alfred Hitchcock to secure the rights to this novel, which proved to be a veritable blueprint for an icy masterpiece of murder, mystery, and suspense. Véra Clouzot plays the sickly wife of a callous headmaster of a provincial boarding school going to seed, and the commanding Simone Signoret is the headmaster's mistreated mistress. Together they plot and carry out his murder, a brutal drowning that director Clouzot documents in chilly detail, but the corpse disappears, and a nosy detective starts sniffing around the grounds as threatening notes taunt the women. Clouzot's thriller is as precise and accomplished a work as anything in Hitchcock's canon, a film of grueling suspense and startling shocks in an overcast, gray world of decay, but his icy manipulations lack the human dimension and emotional resonance of the master of suspense. The film has been accused of being misanthropic by many critics, and Clouzot's attitude toward his characters is bitter at best, contemptuous at worst. The viewer is left on the outside looking in, but the razor precision and terrifying twists deliver a sleek, bleak spectacle worthy of attention. --Sean Axmaker
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Product Details
Diabolique (The Criterion Collection) Spine #35)
- DVD: 0 pages (1999-01-26)
- Publisher: Criterion
- Label: Criterion
- Starring: Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot, Paul Meurisse, Charles Vanel, Jean Brochard
- Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot
- Encoding: Region 1
- Format: Black & White, Color, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
- Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1,
- Rated: Unrated
- Studio: Criterion
- DVD Release Date: 1999-01-26
- Run Time: 116
- ISBN: 0780021940
- Average Customer Review: based on 70 reviews
- Sales Rank in DVD: #34869
Customer Reviews
Avg. Customer Review:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: DUBBED! UGH! 2010-08-13
Comment: The VHS version of "Diabolique" pictured here (black-and-white cover, "Hollywood Classics" series) is a dubbed version of the French original. There is no notation on the slipcase or tape itself to advise the viewer of that fact. Stay away from this product!
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Horror classic... 2010-06-11
Comment: "Diabolique"(1954) is directed by Georges Clouzot (The Wages of Fear). The story is about a wife (Vera Clouzot) and a mistress (Nicole Horner) who plot to murder the abusive husband (Paul Meurisee), but after the murder the body goes mysteriously missing witnesses spot someone that appears to be the dead husband. This psychological thriller was to influence Alfred Hitchcock's later films including "Psycho"(1960) and "Vertigo"(1958).
This film is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and the digital transfer was created from a 35mm fine-grain composite master made from a restored negative, however this dvd came out in 1999 and isn't as cleaned up as one would expect to see on a recent Criterion release. This film doesn't appear to have been remastered by Criterion, but it's still a good print, though with flecks of dust and some scratches appearing on the film.
This film is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and the digital transfer was created from a 35mm fine-grain composite master made from a restored negative, however this dvd came out in 1999 and isn't as cleaned up as one would expect to see on a recent Criterion release. This film doesn't appear to have been remastered by Criterion, but it's still a good print, though with flecks of dust and some scratches appearing on the film.
Customer Rating:
Summary: What Hitchcock Said 2010-05-09
Comment: In a press conference shortly after the release of Psycho, a journalist asked Hitchcock, "Mr. Hitchcock, my daughter saw Diabolique and refuses to take baths. Now she's seen Psycho and refuses to take showers. It's become a problem. What do suggest I do?" Hitchcock replied: "Send her to the dry cleaners." It must have galled Hitch to have lost out to Henri Clouzot in making this film. It is right up his alley as a classic suspense film.
Suffice to say Diabolique is a creepy little thriller that sticks with you long after you've seen it. In fact, it never actually leaves your mind. Decay and decadence permeates the boys' school grounds. You know in advance that no good will come of this.
The acting is superb, and this film is rightfully remembered as one of Simone Signoret's best performances as the world weary hussy schoolmarm. Vera Clouzot is multi-layered as the put-upon, frazzled wife. Both women are riveting.
Buy it. Turn down the lights. See if you don't jump.
Suffice to say Diabolique is a creepy little thriller that sticks with you long after you've seen it. In fact, it never actually leaves your mind. Decay and decadence permeates the boys' school grounds. You know in advance that no good will come of this.
The acting is superb, and this film is rightfully remembered as one of Simone Signoret's best performances as the world weary hussy schoolmarm. Vera Clouzot is multi-layered as the put-upon, frazzled wife. Both women are riveting.
Buy it. Turn down the lights. See if you don't jump.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Diabolique 2010-03-09
Comment: This classic suspense thriller offers all of the character and drive of Hitchcock's later masterpieces with its own unique look and feel. A woman and her husband's mistress plot to kill the man that has been oppressing each of them, but suspicions mount after the corpse of their drowned lover disappears from the pool where they planted the body. Was Michel really dead, or has someone discovered their deadly secret? Clouzot delivers a visually stunning film with fluid camera movements and inventive tracking shots. The flawed character of Christine is built in such a way that it is impossible to find fault in her actions, especially after she is beaten by her dominating husband while trying to slap a poisoned drink from his hand in a moment of fear and doubt. A recurring mirror motif constantly reflects Christine's guilt, as she is the only character to have her image cast back repeatedly throughout the film. Signoret plays Nicole as an emotionless and robotic femme fatale, however her cold demeanor and actions along with the impossible appearances of M. Delassalle after the disappearance of the body lead to an all too predictable end. The slow and methodical build is expertly handled, and only further strengthened by an excellent cast. Hitchcock fans will find everything to love in DIABOLIQUE, even if it falls just short of a perfect film.
-Carl Manes
I Like Horror Movies
-Carl Manes
I Like Horror Movies
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Summary: Even If You Think You Hate Subtitled Films You'll Love This One 2010-02-06
Comment: DIABLIQUE is one of the best suspense films ever made. Well acted, expertly filmed, and suspenseful at every turn, the most hardened English language only viewer will soon forget the actors are speaking French. The story is masterfully told through what transpires on the screen as well as some very well translated English subtitles. The contemporary details of French life in the 50's make it even more worth viewing. And though modern viewers may see the major twist coming from a great distance the film still manages to end with haunting ambiguity.