''The Wages of Sin'' (French: ''Le salaire du péché'') is a 1956 French

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Denys de La Patellière Denys de La Patellière (8 March 1921 in Nantes, France–21 July 2013) was a French people, French film director and scriptwriter. He also directed Television series. of 92. Filmography as director * 1955 in film, 1955 : ''Les Aristocrate ...

and starring

Danielle Darrieux Danielle Yvonne Marie Antoinette Darrieux (; 1 May 1917 – 17 October 2017) was a French actress of stage, television and film, as well as a singer and dancer. Beginning in 1931, she appeared in more than 110 films. She was one of France's g ...

Jean-Claude Pascal Jean-Claude Villeminot (24 October 1927 – 5 May 1992), better known as Jean-Claude Pascal (), was a French comedian, actor, singer and writer. Early life He was born in Paris into a family of wealthy textile manufacturers. His mother, ...

and

Jeanne Moreau Jeanne Moreau (; 23 January 1928 – 31 July 2017) was a French actress, singer, screenwriter, director, and socialite. She made her theatrical debut in 1947, and established herself as one of the leading actresses of the Comédie-Française. Mo ...

. A

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

, it was adapted from the 1949 novel '' Emily Will Know'' by the American crime writer Nancy RutledgeWalker-Morrison p.241 It was shot at the Photosonor Studios in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...

Paul-Louis Boutié Paul-Louis Boutié (1910-2004) was a French art directorCoates-Smith & McGee p.96 who designed the sets for many film productions in postwar France cinema. Selected filmography * '' Beautiful Star'' (1938) * '' The Acrobat'' (1941) * '' Gringal ...

Synopsis

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. With ...

Jean, an ambitious

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

, marries Isabelle the daughter of a wealthy

shipowner A ship-owner is the owner of a merchant vessel (commercial ship) and is involved in the shipping industry. In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and exploits a ship, usually for delivering cargo at a certain frei ...

but finds her cut out any inheritance. Later when he has discovered that she has been secretly added back into her father's will, he dreams about killing him and scares the old man into a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

. The only witness to the crime is the shipowner's

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

Angele who he seduces and now becomes his lover and accomplice, plotting to kill Isabelle so that they can claim the inheritance.

Cast

as Isabelle Lindstrom *

as Jean de Charvin *

as Angèle Ribot *

Jean Debucourt Jean Debucourt (19 January 1894 – 22 March 1958) was a French stage and film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1920 and 1958. Selected filmography * '' The Little Thing'' (1923) * ''Jean Chouan'' (1926) * ''Madame Récami ...

as Frank Lindstrom *

Marcel Bozzuffi Marcel Bozzuffi (28 October 19291 February 1988) was a French film actor. He appeared as a hitman in the Oscar-winning American film '' The French Connection''. In 1963, he married French actress Françoise Fabian. Selected filmography *1955: ...

as un marin présidant aux obsèques *

Michel Etcheverry Michel Etcheverry (16 December 1919 – 30 March 1999) was a French actor. First a teacher, he was fired in 1941 for refusing to make the Maréchal children sing, here we come! . He began his career in the theater as a stage manager, then joined ...

as Docteur Maroual *

Jean Lanier Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * J ...

as Le pasteur *

Christian Lude Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

as Benoît *

Julien Verdier Julien Verdier (13 January 1910 - 15 July 1999) was a French actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films from 1949 to 1994. Filmography References External links * 1910 births 1999 deaths French male film actors {{Fran ...

as Le libraire *

Georges Chamarat Georges Chamarat (30 March 1901 – 21 November 1982) was a French actor. He appeared in more than 100 films and television shows between 1929 and 1981. He starred in the film ''The Adventures of Arsène Lupin'', which was entered into the 7 ...

as Le médecin * Pierre Morin as M. Logan, le signataire

References

Bibliography

*Walker-Morrison, Deborah. ''Classic French Noir: Gender and the Cinema of Fatal Desire''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020.

External links

* 1956 films 1956 drama films French drama films 1950s French-language films Films directed by Denys de La Patellière Films based on American novels Films with screenplays by Roland Laudenbach 1950s French films French black-and-white films {{1950s-France-film-stub