''Beauties of the Night'' (French: ''Les Belles de nuit'') is a 1952 French-Italian

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed and written by

René Clair René Clair (; 11 November 1898 – 15 March 1981), born René-Lucien Chomette (), was a French filmmaker and writer. He first established his reputation in the 1920s as a director of silent films in which comedy was often mingled with fantasy. H ...

who co-produced with

Angelo Rizzoli Angelo Rizzoli, OML (; 31 October 1889 – 24 September 1970) was an Italian publisher and film producer. Early life Rizzoli was born in Milan on 31 October 1889. Orphaned at a young age and raised in poverty, he rose to prosperity. He appren ...

. The film stars

Gérard Philipe Gérard Philipe () (born Gérard Albert Philip, 4 December 1922 – 25 November 1959) was a prominent French actor who appeared in 32 films between 1944 and 1959. He came to prominence during the later period of the poetic realism movement o ...

, Martine Carol,

Gina Lollobrigida Luigia "Gina" Lollobrigida (4 July 1927 – 16 January 2023) was an Italian actress, model, photojournalist, and sculptor. She was one of the highest-profile European actresses of the 1950s and 1960s, a period in which she was an international ...

and Magali Vendeuil. It was nominated the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

for

Golden Lion The Golden Lion () is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is regarded as one of the film industry's most prestigious and distinguished prizes. In 1970, a ...

(René Clair). It was shot at Boulogne Studios in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Plot

Impoverished piano teacher and composer Claude (

) fantasizes about seducing beautiful rich women. One night a promising dream turns into a nightmare in which he's chased by the violent husbands and brothers of his lovers. He gets up and tries to stay awake for fear of feeling haunted again. Then he meets his neighbour Suzanne ( Magali Vendeuil) who resembles a woman from his dream.

Cast

as Claude * Martine Carol as Edmee *

as Leila / Cashier * Magali Vendeuil as Suzanne * Marilyn Buferd as Madame Bonacieux / Postal clerk * Raymond Bussières as Roger the mechanic *

Raymond Cordy Raymond Cordy (9 December 1898 – 23 April 1956) was a French film actor,Youngkin p.466 born Raymond Cordiaux. He appeared in over a hundred and thirty films during his career. Selected filmography * '' Little Lise'' (1930) - Un joueur de bill ...

as Suzanne's father Gaston / Marquis *

Bernard La Jarrige Bernard La Jarrige (25 February 1912 – 29 May 1999) was a French film and television actor.Paietta p.17 His name is sometimes written as Bernard Lajarrige. Selected filmography * '' Orage'' (1938) - Un copain (uncredited) * ''La cité des lumi ...

as Léon, le gendarme / Leon the gendarme *

Albert Michel Albert Michel (1909–1981) was a French stage, film and television actor.Paietta p.40 Selected filmography * ''Je chante'' (1938) - Un laitier (uncredited) * ''Ne bougez plus'' (1941) - Clanpinet * ''Chèque au porteur'' (1941) * ''Fièvres' ...

as Le facteur / Postman *

Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...

as The Old Gentleman * Jean Parédès as Paul the pharmacist * Paolo Stoppa as Opera director

References

External links

*
''Les Belles de nuit''
at Films de France Films directed by René Clair French romantic fantasy films 1950s fantasy comedy films 1950s romantic fantasy films Films about composers Films about dreams French fantasy comedy films 1950s French-language films French black-and-white films 1950s French films Films shot at Boulogne Studios Films scored by Georges Van Parys {{1950s-France-film-stub