Mademoiselle

The French village schoolteacher known only as Mademoiselle may seem prim and proper, but she’s a pyromaniac and persecutor too. When she unleashes fires and other calamities on her neighbours, the locals reflexively accuse new arrivals including the hunky Italian lumberjack Mademoiselle has eyes for. British New Wave film director Tony Richardson took up a script by Jean Genet and had it reworked by Duras, then shot it with breathtaking cinematography and an indelible lead performance from Jeanne Moreau. An emotionally complex mini-thriller emerges as the sultry sociopath doles out disasters and sets herself up for Durassian dead-end desire.

Cannes Film Festival: In Competition