Les Enfants Terribles (film)

Les Enfants Terribles
Directed by	Jean-Pierre Melville
Produced by	Jean-Pierre Melville
Written by	Jean Cocteau Jean-Pierre Melville
Starring	Nicole Stéphane Edouard Dermit
Cinematography	Henri Decaë
Distributed by	Janus Films
Release dates	1950
Running time	106 minutes
Country	France
Language	French

Les Enfants Terribles ("The terrible children") is a 1950 French film directed by Jean-Pierre Melville and based on Jean Cocteau's novel of the same name. The first feature film of Melville, Le Silence de la Mer (1949), attracted the attention of Jean Cocteau, who commissioned him to direct the film version of Les Enfants Terribles.

Synopsis

Elisabeth is very protective of her teenage brother Paul, who has been injured in a snowball fight at school and has to rest in bed most of the time. The siblings are inseparable, living in the same room, fighting, playing secret games, and rarely leaving the house. Paul’s friend, Gerard, often drops by to stay with them. One day Elisabeth brings home Agathe to live with them. She bears a strong resemblance to Dargelos, a schoolboy whom Paul had a crush on and the same boy who injured him. Paul and Agathe become attracted to each other, causing Elisabeth to be very jealous.

Cast

• Jean Cocteau (Voice-over) : le narrateur
• Nicole Stephane : Élisabeth
• Édouard Dermit : Paul
• Jacques Bernard : Gérard
• Renée Cosima : Agathe/Dargelos
• Adeline Aucoc : Mariette
• Maurice Revel : the physician
• Maria Cyliakus : the mother
• Roger Gaillard : Gérard's uncle
• Melvyn Martin : Michaël
• Jean-Marie Robain : the principal
• Annabel Buffet (credited « Annabel ») : the model
• Émile Mathys : le censeur
• Étienne Aubray
• Rachel Devirys
• Hélène Rémy

External links

• Les Enfants Terribles at IMDb
• Les Enfants Terribles at AllMovie