The Smiling Madame Beudet
About The Smiling Madame Beudet
Madame Beudet is married to a man who locks her piano when he is angry and who likes to put an empty revolver to his own head. One night he has theater tickets and she will not go. While he is out she loads the revolver. The next day he points it at himself, then at her, and fires. The shot misses. He takes her in his arms and says, "How could I live without you?"
Cast & crew
More about The Smiling Madame Beudet
Germaine Dulac directed. She and Denys Amiel adapted the 1921 play by Amiel and André Obey. Charles Delac and Marcel Vandal produced it. Maurice Forster and Paul Parguel photographed it. Germaine Dermoz plays Madame Beudet. Alexandre Arquillière plays Monsieur Beudet. Wikidata lists a release of November 9, 1923, and running times of 38 and 42 minutes. A copy is on the Internet Archive.
Themes
Making
Dulac stages her thoughts as superimposed images over the room and the locked piano.
Look
Maurice Forster and Paul Parguel shot the room, with superimpositions for what she imagines.
Preservation
A copy is on the Internet Archive and on Wikimedia Commons.
Notes
- The revolver gag is his joke, until she puts a bullet in it.
- He locks the piano lid when he is cross.
- Jean d'Yd, Yvette Grisier, Madeleine Guitty, and Raoul Paoli are billed.
- Her fantasies are staged with superimposition.
- A copy is also on Wikimedia Commons.
Scenes
- She loads the revolver while he is at the theater.
- He fires at her, misses, and embraces her.
Influenced by
- Denys Amiel and André Obey's play La Souriante Madame Beudet (1921)
Also available
- Internet Archive (ptp_la-souriante-madame-_germaine-dulac_avi_xvid_640x460_4999)
Quotes
How could I live without you?
