L'Enfer poster & wallpaper

André Wilms, Christine Minazzoli, Dora Doll

Paul (François Cluzet) and Nelly (Emmanuelle Béart) have what seems to be a storybook marriage. They love each other madly and have worked together to turn their little lakeside inn int...( read more  read more... )o a gorgeous resort getaway while raising an adorable son. But there's a problem: Paul is convinced Nelly is having an affair and his jealousy spins to insane proportions. Hallucinations and nightmares twist his dementia until he imagines her sleeping with every man in sight, and his obsessive spying turns Nelly's life into a living hell. Claude Chabrol (director of La Cérémonie, known as the Gallic Hitchcock for his cool thrillers of obsessive love and homicidal passion, created his film from an original unfilmed screenplay by Henri-George Clouzot (Les Diaboliques). He injects Clouzot's dark, misanthropic tale with a soupçon of Hitchcock's voyeuristic obsession, but ultimately makes the film his own with unexpected sympathy for Paul, whose pathological jealousy spins out of control in a chilling conclusion that leaves the viewers uncomfortably nestled in his madness. The film faced charges of misogyny upon release largely because Chabrol remained steadfast in his portrayal of Paul not as a monster but a victim of madness (somewhat at the expense of Nelly, an angelic sexpot whose loyalty and love is almost sacrificial), but ultimately that's what gives L'Enfer its unsettling power. --Sean Axmaker

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67% liked it

858 ratings

Critics

100% liked it

8 critics

Unrated, 100 min.

Directed by: Claude Chabrol

Release Date: January 1, 1994

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DVD Release Date: June 10, 1998

Stats: 58 reviews

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'L'enfer' - poster Emmanuelle Béart as Nelly François Cluzet as Paul Prieur Emmanuelle Béart and François Cluzet François Cluzet and Emmanuelle Béart Emmanuelle Béart as Nelly François Cluzet and Emmanuelle Béart Emmanuelle Béart and Marc Lavoine Emmanuelle Béart as Nelly François Cluzet as Paul Prieur Emmanuelle Béart as Nelly Chabrol directs François Cluzet Emmanuelle Béart as Nelly François Cluzet and Emmanuelle Béart François Cluzet and Emmanuelle Béart
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Flixster Reviews (58)

  • Caltiki
    October 31, 2009
    Caltiki
    'Sans fin'

    Claustrophobic journey into the life of a man, whose feelings turn from love to jealousy to madness. Always admire the narrative elegance and the right amount of cynicism that Chabrol uses to tell his stories.
  • habitualdamnation
    February 4, 2008
    habitualdamnation
    I watched this thinkin it was the other Beart film called L'Enfer too. It wasn't very good. I don't think any of the themes stuck. But I'm a slut for Beart.
  • littlecharmer1959
    March 4, 2009
    littlecharmer1959
    L'Enfer (translated as "Hell") started life as a script by Henri-Georges Clouzot starring Romy Schneider but filming was stopped when Clouzot suffered a heart attack.
    Chabrol then got his hands on it and turned it into a semi successful study of one man's decent into madness. T...( read more)hings start of well for our main character (François Cluzet) he has a new wife, a young son and is running a successful hotel. Though soon enough he starts to suspect his wife of adultery (when his wife is the flirty Emmanuelle Béart who can blame him). As the film continues it becomes obvious that this man clearly has something wrong with him and is beoming more and more obsessed and paranoid.
    The ending was rather ambiguous, but even with the two good lead performances it's still rather average.
  • Abba123456
    July 27, 2009
    Abba123456
    Add a review (optional)...
  • sleepykiss
    February 1, 2008
    sleepykiss
    2nd viewing. Hmmm... jealousy, paranoia, madness. Just who is to blame? So-so story, great ending. A must see for all EB fans tho, she does prance around in her black lingerie for a few moments lol.
  • danieljparsons
    November 23, 2007
    danieljparsons
    Confusingly, the is the first of two (completely unrelated) films Emmanuele Béart has been in to be called L'Enfer or Hell. If this is half as good as the second one then it'll be worth a watch...
  • maxwellshammer2
    April 25, 2007
    maxwellshammer2
    Excellent screenplay and direction. Despite the latter coming over thirty years after the former. The ending is pretty grim, but then it is French afterall. This has probably been overshadowed by Danis Tanovic's film of the same name and same lead actress though.
  • smegheadthegnome
    September 4, 2006
    smegheadthegnome
    excellent thought kinda messed up. the change from your suspicion of Nelly to her becoming a victim of her husband's insane jealousy is amazing

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