Paris, France, during the First World War. While thousands of soldiers die every day on the battlefields, Henri Landru, a seemingly respectable furniture dealer, married and father of four children, relentlessly feeds his own sinister factory of death.
Acting
Denner's terrifying domesticity — evil in a cardigan.
Direction
Chabrol's clinical distance makes it worse.
Writing
Satire so sharp it leaves scars.
Director
Claude Chabrol
Charles Denner
Henri Landru
Michèle Morgan
Mme Buisson
Danielle Darrieux
Mme Héon
Hildegard Knef
German Widow
Juliette Mayniel
Mme Collomb
Stéphane Audran
Fernande Segret
Catherine Rouvel
Mlle Babeley
Françoise Lugagne
Catherine Landru
Denise Provence
Mme Lacoste
Serge Bento
Maurice Landru
Claude Mansard
Landru's Attorney
Robert Burnier
Court President
Mario David
Advocate General
Jean-Louis Maury
Commissaire Belin
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Landru's real notebook — 'burns' meant victims — was Chabrol's actual prop inspiration.
Chabrol made this during France's Algerian War, slyly commenting on state violence while claiming historical distance.
FR
