Madame de... (1953)

Max Ophuls’ woozy whirligig tracks a pair of unwanted earrings around high-society Paris – until they bear the weight of lost time and passion.

Max Ophuls’ La Ronde (1950) follows a chain of amorous liaisons, passing from one lover to the next until the story comes back to where it started. Ever attracted to circular patterns, in his Madame de... the unnamed wife (Danielle Darrieux) of an aristocrat pawns her earrings to pay off her debts. The transaction sets off a chain reaction, as the earrings exchange hands between the pawnbroker, the lady’s husband, her husband’s mistress, and her suitor, implicating each in a web of desire and deceit that leads to tragedy.

Ophuls’ film presents a woman imprisoned by social conventions and a material world of ornate, glittering decor, which the director navigates in sublimely sinuous tracking shots.

“The most subtle, elegant and cruel romantic film.” Alain Masson

“Love has never been better depicted on the screen. It is like Mozart: light and tragic.” Christian Viviani

“Cinema’s most dazzling flow of imagery, with the chill of death in every transition.” Michael Phillips

“Ophuls’ sublime testament to romantic yearnings.” Tom Ryan

“The glove is velvet; the punch, hard.” Robert Cashill

1953 France, Italy
Directed by
Max Ophuls
Produced by
Henry Deutschmeister
Written by
Marcel Achard, Max Ophuls, Annette Wademant
Featuring
Charles Boyer, Danielle Darrieux, Vittorio De Sica
Running time
102 minutes

Ranked in The Greatest Films of All Time poll

Sight and Sound

Who voted for Madame de...

Critics

Elisabet Cabeza
Spain
Dan Callahan
USA
Michael Campi
Australia
Robert Cashill
USA
Hervé Dumont
Switzerland
Tag Gallagher
USA
Alfonso Garcia Calvo
Spain
Julien Gester
France
Andrei Gorzo
Romania
David Hare
Australia
Molly Haskell
USA
Amy Heller
USA
Barrett Hodsdon
Australia
Thierry Jousse
France
Dave Kehr
USA
Jean-Marc Lalanne
France
Phuong Le
Vietnam
Phillip Lopate
USA
Paul Lynch
Ireland
Alain Masson
France
Ruby McGuigan
UK
Gerhard Midding
Germany
Michael Phillips
USA
Tim Robey
UK
Tom Ryan
Australia
Peter Scarlet
USA/Abu Dhabi
Farran Smith Nehme
USA
Anna Swanson
Canada
Kenneth Turan
USA
Marcos Vieytes
Argentina
Christian VIVIANI
France
Patricia White
USA

Directors

Wes Anderson
USA
Neil Jordan
Ireland
Richard Kwietniowski
UK
Jim McBride
USA
Edgar Wright
UK