Prosecutor Etzel discovers that his father has sentenced a man, Leonardo Maurizius, on mere presumptions. He then makes it a point of honor to trace the sources of the case to uncover the truth.
Acting
Anton Walbrook's Waremme — elegance masking rot.
Direction
Duvivier's flashback structure: truth as shattered mirror.
Director
Julien Duvivier
Daniel Gélin
Léonard Maurizius
Madeleine Robinson
Elisabeth Maurizius
Eleonora Rossi Drago
Anna Jahn
Anton Walbrook
Grégoire Waremme
Charles Vanel
Wolf Andergast
Berthe Bovy
La grand-mère
Denis d'Inès
Pierre-Paul Maurizius
Pierre Asso
Le maître-chanteur
Paola Borboni
Madame Bobika
Jane Faber
La gouvernante
Jim Gérald
Le professeur
Harry-Max
L'avocat
Sandro Ruffini
Le proviseur
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Duvivier filmed this same story twice: a 1928 silent version exists, making this his own personal reopening of a cold case.
The 1954 release landed during France's post-war reckoning with collaboration — the film's obsession with buried guilt and public masks hit different.
IT
FR
