Louberger, director of an orphanage, is full of praise for a former boarder, Mr. Sauval, who has become their benefactor. One night he arrives and he does not seem to be exactly the man described by Louberger. He has in fact become a crooked lawyer and he is wanted for a crime he has just committed. Despite his efforts he will not escape the police but he will manage to remain, in the eyes of the children, at the height of his legend.
Acting
Fresnay's slippery charm—evil that feels almost reasonable.
Direction
Dréville's tight 90-minute morality trap, no escape hatches.
Director
Jean Dréville
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Fresnay, fresh from playing the noble priest in 'Monsieur Vincent,' inverts his saintly image here—French cinema loved testing his moral range.
1946 France: post-war audiences grappling with collaborators, resistance fighters, and who gets to claim moral authority. Sauval's double life hit different.
FR
