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Thérèse Raquin
Thérèse Raquin
Directed by	Marcel Carné
Written by	Marcel Carné; Charles Spaak
Based on	Thérèse Raquin; by Émile Zola
Produced by	Raymond Hakim; Robert Hakim
Starring	Simone Signoret; Raf Vallone; Jacques Duby
Cinematography	Roger Hubert
Edited by	Marthe Gottie; Suzanne Rondeau; Henri Rust
Music by	Maurice Thiriet
Production; companies	Paris Film Productions; Lux Film
Distributed by	Lux Film
Release date	6 November 1953;
Running time	102 minutes
Countries	France; Italy
Language	French

Thérèse Raquin (also The Adultress) is a 1953 French-Italian drama film directed by Marcel Carné and starring Simone Signoret, Raf Vallone and Jacques Duby.^[1] The story is loosely based on the 1867 novel of the same title by Émile Zola but with the setting updated to 1953.^[2] It was shot at the Neuilly Studios in Paris and on location in Lyon. The film's sets were designed by the art director Paul Bertrand. It was screened at the 14th Venice International Film Festival where it won the Silver Lion.

Plot

Thérèse, an orphan, has been brought up by her widowed aunt in a dingy backstreet shop in Lyon and married to her sickly first cousin Camille. Into their stifling existence comes Laurent, a lively Italian truck driver. He is immediately struck by Thérèse, who succumbs to him but will not abandon her husband and aunt. Once aware of the relationship, Camille and his mother plot to get rid of Thérèse.

Their plan is that Camille will take her to Paris and hand her over to another aunt, but Laurent climbs onto the train and, his temper overcoming him, pushes Camille out in the dark at full speed. He then slips out at the next stop and Thérèse maintains to the police that she was asleep in her compartment the whole time. The news of Camille's death gives his mother a stroke that leaves her speechless, cared for by Thérèse who warns Laurent to stay away and not attract police attention.

However there was another man asleep in Thérèse's compartment on the train and, when he sees the newspaper reports, comes down to Lyon and asks for half a million francs to stay silent. Aware that Thérèse and Laurent might kill him rather than pay, he leaves a letter with the maid in his hotel, asking her to post it to the police if he does not return. The pair manage to find 400,000 francs, which he accepts and gives them a signed receipt but, on leaving, he is knocked over by a lorry and dies. The film ends as the maid takes his letter to the post.

Cast

Simone Signoret as Thérèse Raquin
Raf Vallone as Laurent LeClaire
Jacques Duby as Camille Raquin
Sylvie as Madame Raquin
Maria Pia Casilio as Georgette, la bonne
Marcel André as Michaud
Martial Rèbe as Grivet
Paul Frankeur as Le contrôleur
Alain Terrane as Un camionneur
Bernard Véron as Le postier
Francette Vernillat as Françoise, la bossue
Lucien Hubert as Le chef de gare de Dijon
Madeleine Barbulée as Madame Noblet, une cliente
Nerio Bernardi as Le médecin
Roland Lesaffre as Riton, le matelot maître-chanteur

Reception

The Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa cited Thérèse Raquin as one of his 100 favorite films.^[3]

References

^ Hayward, Susan (2004). Simone Signoret: The Star as Cultural Sign. Continuum. p. 244. ISBN 978-0826413932.
^ Goble, Alan (1999). The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Bowker-Saur. p. 979. ISBN 978-1857392296.
^ Thomas-Mason, Lee (15 June 2023). "From Stanley Kubrick to Martin Scorsese: Akira Kurosawa once named his top 100 favourite films of all time". Far Out Magazine. Retrieved 23 January 2023.