''Whirlpool of Desire'' (French: ''Remous'') is a 1935 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 ...

directed by Edmond T. Gréville and starring

Jeanne Boitel Jeanne Boitel (; 4 January 1904 – 7 August 1987) was a French film actress. She played a role in the Resistance during World War II, using the surname of ''Mozart''. She met Jacques Jaujard during her resistance activities in the war, and marr ...

Jean Galland Jean Galland (1887–1967) was a French film actor. Selected filmography * '' Fantômas'' (1932) * ''The Oil Sharks'' (1933) * ''The Barber of Seville'' (1933) * '' The Scandal'' (1934) * '' Princesse Tam Tam'' (1935) * ''Whirlpool of Desire'' (1 ...

, Maurice Maillot, and Françoise Rosay.Andrew p.151 The screenplay was written by American writer

Peggy Thompson Margaret "Peggy" Thompson, later Margaret Neilson, was the housekeeper at Coilsfield House or Montgomery Castle in Ayrshire, Scotland. She married John Neilsen of Monyfee. The couple lived at Minnybae Farm near Kirkoswald. She was the 'charming ...

and André Doderet. The film's sets were designed by the art director

Pierre Schild Pierre Schild (1897–1968) was a Russian Empire-born art director known for his work in French and Spanish cinema. Born Lakka Schildknecht, he left Russia following the October Revolution in 1917. Following the German invasion of France in 1940 h ...

. It was shot at the

Saint-Maurice Studios Saint-Maurice is the name or part of the name of places. It refers to the legendary Saint Maurice. Canada * Saint-Maurice (Lower Canada), an electoral district 1792–1838 * Saint-Maurice (Province of Canada), an electoral district 1841–1867 * ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...

Plot

A newlywed couple suffer tragedy when the husband is seriously injured in a car accident.

Cast

... Jeanne Saint-Clair - the Wife *

... Henry Saint-Clair - the Husband * Maurice Maillot ... Robert Vanier, the Lover *Diana Sari ... Paulette, Madame Gardane's daughter * ... Mademoiselle Lydia * ... The Doctor *

Robert Arnoux Robert Raymond Arnoux (23 October 1899, in Lille – 13 March 1964, in Paris) was a French actor. Selected filmography * ''Hantise'' (1922) * '' Napoléon'' (1927) - Un conventionnel (uncredited) * ''Rive gauche'' (1931) - Alfred * ''Le congr� ...

... Pierre * Françoise Rosay ... Madame Gardane

Censorship

In November 1939, the film was released in the U.S. by

Arthur Mayer Arthur L. Mayer (March 28, 1886, Demopolis, Alabama - April 14, 1981, New York City) was an American film producer and film distributor who worked with Joseph Burstyn in distributing films directed by Roberto Rossellini and other famous Europea ...

and

Joseph Burstyn Joseph Burstyn (born Jossel Lejba Bursztyn; December 15, 1899 – November 29, 1953) was a Polish-American film distributor who specialized in the commercial release of foreign-language and American independent film productions. Life and career B ...

after a long court battle over American

film censorship Film censorship is carried out by various countries to differing degrees, sometimes as a result of powerful or relentless lobbying by organizations or individuals. Films that are banned in a particular country change over time. Rating systems A ...

. Burstyn was later involved in the '' Miracle Decision'' (1952) overturning film censorship in the U.S. From

IMDB IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

– Monday, January 23, 1939: "The French film ''Remous'' was shown Friday anuary 20to five judges of the New York State Appellate Division in proceedings in the attempt by Arthur Mayer and Joseph Burstyn to get a license to screen it in New York State. The picture has twice been denied a license, first in August 1936, when it was rejected as being "indecent", "immoral", and tending to "corrupt morals". It was again rejected in November 1937. In March 1938, it was screened for the New York Board of Regents who, on April 14, disapproved application for a license.

Arthur Garfield Hays Arthur Garfield Hays (December 12, 1881 – December 14, 1954) was an American lawyer and champion of civil liberties issues, best known as a co-founder and general counsel of the American Civil Liberties Union and for participating in notable ca ...

, counsel for Mayer and Burstyn at yesterday's proceedings, ridiculed the objections of Irwin Esmond and the Regents to certain scenes, pointing out that the film was French and would appeal only to an educated audience. Counsel for the Regents based his plea on the film's theme of sex-frustration, arguing that it would be unwise public policy to show it to all classes of people." In November 1939, Mayer and Burstyn released the film in the U.S. as ''Whirlpool of Desire''.

Film censorship in the United States Film censorship in the United States was a frequent feature of the industry almost from the beginning of the U.S. motion picture industry until the end of strong self-regulation in 1966. Court rulings in the 1950s and 1960s severely constrained g ...

was not overturned until the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

case, ''

Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson ''Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson'', 343 U.S. 495 (1952), also referred to as the ''Miracle Decision'', was a landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court that largely marked the decline of motion picture censorship in the United States. ...

'' (the "Miracle Decision") in 1952.

References

Bibliography

* Dudley Andrew. ''Mists of Regret: Culture and Sensibility in Classic French Film''. Princeton University Press, 1995.

External links