THE EARRINGS OF MADAME DE... (MADAME DE...)
Max Ophüls - 1953

 

Madame de

PLAYING AT THE CREST THEATRE.

In English & French with English subtitles.

MOVIE CLIP

REVIEWS

Three good reasons you should see "The Earrings of Madame de..." are the presence and performances of Danielle Darrieux, Charles Boyer and Vittorio De Sica. This celestial triangle has never been surpassed in grace, charm and, yes, wit and humor. Andrew Sarris, New York Observer

Haunting romantic tragedy. Michael E. Grost, Classic Film and Television

Because it's Ophüls, there's an aching sense of genuine heartbreak and loss beneath the sumptuous decor and poised, urbane ironies. Philip Kemp, Total Film

One of the most mannered and contrived love movies ever filmed. It glitters and dazzles, and beneath the artifice it creates a heart, and breaks it. Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

...exquisite, both in its lavish craftsmanship and in the way it captures the acute joy (and pain) of romantic love. Josh Larsen, LarsenOnFilm

Surely one of the most cruelly tragic, and sublimely funny, melodramas of all time. Jeremy Heilman, MovieMartyr.com

Director: Max Ophüls

Screenplay: Marcel Achard & Max Ophüls. Based on the novel by Louise de Vilmorin

100 min - Black & white

US Distribution: Janus Film

PERIOD DRAMA/ROMANCE

Not Rated (all audiences)

Cast:
Charles Boyer: Général André de...
Danielle Darrieux: Comtesse Louise de...
Vittorio De Sica: Baron Fabrizio Donati
Jean Debucourt: Monsieur Rémy
Jean Galland: Monsieur de Bernac
Mireille Perrey: the nurse

Presented in glorious 35 mm!

Rendez-vous with J. Greenberg after the screening.

PURCHASE 16th SFFF
TICKETS & PASSES HERE!

Actress Danielle Darrieux (The Young Girls from Rochefort - SFFF 2011), an icon of French cinema, celebrated her 100th birthday on May 1, 2017, and the SFFF is celebrating by presenting one of her most legendary films, The Earrings of Madame de… in glorious 35 mm!

Paris, end of the 19th century. The wealthy Countess Louise de… (Darrieux) sells her earrings to pay off a small debt and leads her husband General André de… (Charles Boyer) to believe that the jewels have been lost. The jeweler secretly gets the earrings back to the General who offers them to his mistress. Via Constantinople, the earrings end up in the hands of a diplomat, the Baron Donati (Vittorio De Sica) who, back in Paris, falls in love with the original owner of the earrings, Madame de… to whom he gives the jewels as a symbol of his platonic love. Madame de… tells her husband that she has found her earrings but the general, angered by what he assumes is proof of his wife’s infidelity, provokes the Baron into a duel…

The Earrings of Madame de... is, with La RondeLe Plaisir and Lola Montès (SFFF 2009), one of the final four masterpieces German director Max Ophüls made in France after leaving Hollywood. The Earrings of Madame de… is considered to be Ophüls’ greatest achievement. It is certainly his most incisive exploration of the human psyche and his most scathing attack on high society. The earrings that propel the narrative symbolize the power men have over women.

This lavish film's extraordinary power derives primarily from Danielle Darrieux's arresting portrayal of Louise de... as we witness her boredom turning into happiness, and her happiness turning into sorrow. Sharing the screen with her are two other celebrated icons: French actor Charles Boyer and Italian actor-director Vittorio De Sica (The Bicycle Thieves).

Shown with ON THE RUN (EN BOUT DE COURSE) by Gianguido Spinelli

CREST THEATRE
Saturday, June 17 - 11:00am
ONE SCREENING ONLY!
Rendez-vous with film historian J. Greenberg after the screening.