1907 Central America: Maria II is the daughter of an Irish terrorist. After her father's death, she meets Maria I, a performer, and decides to stay with the circus, and on her debut as a singer, unintentionally invents the striptease and makes the circus famous. Their inadvertent encounter with a socialist revolutionary lands them leading a revolution against the dictator, the capitalists, and the Church.
Acting
Bardot and Moreau's electric, mischievous chemistry carries every frame.
Direction
Malle treats revolution as absurdist farce without losing its sting.
Cinematography
Glorious Technicolor that makes the desert pop like a fever dream.
Director
Louis Malle
Brigitte Bardot
Maria I
Jeanne Moreau
Maria II
Paulette Dubost
Mrs. Diogène
Claudio Brook
The Great Rodolfo
Carlos López Moctezuma
Rodríguez
Poldo Bendandi
Werther
George Hamilton
Flores
Gregor von Rezzori
Diogène
Francisco Reiguera
Father Superior
Adriana Roel
Janine
José Baviera
Don Alvaro
José Ángel Espinosa 'Ferrusquilla'
The Dictator of San Miguel
Fernando Wagner
Father of Maria I
Roberto Pedret
Pablo
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Bardot and Moreau reportedly couldn't stand each other, which somehow made their on-screen bond more electric.
Malle claimed he invented the spaghetti western with this, which enraged Italians who pointed to Leone's earlier work — the pettiness is delicious.
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