L'Enfer d'Henri-Georges Clouzot

The documentary about Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno is, even in a figurative sense, true hell. What all didn't happen? The famous director had a hit in the 60s with the film The Truth (starring Brigitte Bardot). The stripped Brigitte Bardot impressed the gentlemen at Columbia so much that Clouzot got an unlimited budget for his next film. He chose Romy Schneider as his new muse, at that time looking for a place in Western cinema (meaning as far away west as possible from Germany and Austria). Romy was young and willing to sacrifice much for an artistic project. But the problem arose when the director stopped perceiving reality and kept trying new technical methods and kept reshooting. The story was meant to be a simple tale of jealousy, but the visions of the husband in moments of rage were meant to revolutionize film. How was that supposed to happen? The director tried to translate new shapes and colors derived from the then-modern expressions of creative art into the film. He also wanted to work with sound in a new way. And, of course, combine black and white and color film. Unfortunately, he was too demanding on the actors and creators around him, he was notorious for his dislike of taking Sundays off, he wanted to work practically non-stop, he did not pay attention to the real organization of his work, and it was only a stroke that finally saved him from this obsession. The protagonist Serge Reggiani left the shoot due to sheer exhaustion, while his replacement Jean-Louis Trintignant refused to take part in such a shoot. After the filming, the legend remained. Although Clouzot did make some references to what Inferno inspired in his artistic conception in his last film, La Prisonnière. The original script was bought out after his death and produced under the same title in 1994. For those interested in Romina, this documentary is of special value because it charts an otherwise lost time on the great European actress' journey to her imaginary peak. (28/11/2019)