I must say I really enjoyed this movie, in many ways. I'll have to include several spoilers to explain how.

First, the story is engaging. Although we know "who did it" almost from the beginning, it makes it even more interesting to follow the investigation.

Even more I enjoyed the actors and their characters. Marina Vlady's is extremely repulsive, but she carries it in such way that you keep wondering: could you resist her charms yourself? Virna Lisi shows another kind of beauty, fragile but just as irresistible. Bourvil's character is actually two persons: until the last half hour he is a Columbo-type investigator, full of self-confidence, playing with the criminal; then he breaks down as he realizes that he is powerless to resolve the case. And Pierre Brasseur is so annoying as the lawyer, omnipotent when in charge of the case, but a toy in his lover's hands.

The ending I like the best, not leaving us with any illusion about the possibility of reaching the justice. Even if the court changes the decision, it will be just a consequence of the lawyer's moves in his immoral game...

The subject matter of this film of Christian-Jaque could not be in greater contrast to his 'Madame' which came before and 'Le Tulipe Noir' which came after and although not such an obvious crowd pleaser as those two was a notable box-office success.

Briefly it concerns a brilliant but morally ambiguous criminal lawyer Charles Cassidi who prosecutes a nurse for murder knowing that she is innocent. Juge d'instruction Gaudet comes to believe in her innocence but is powerless to prevent her being found guilty. Although cynical and pessimistic in tone the clever twist at the end leads us to believe that justice might prevail........ It has been adapted from the novel by Jean Laborde who had been a reporter for France Soir specialising in judicial affairs and who certainly knew whereof he wrote.

The four leads are perfectly cast. As befits his character's profession Pierre Brasseur plays to the gallery as Cassidi and the scene where he makes a witness look like an idiot is masterful. The presence of Virna Lisi here reflects that this is a Franco-Italian production. Her casting as the accused nurse is surprising but extremely effective and proves once more that she is so much more than just a pretty face. The same might apply to Marina Vlady who plays the murdered mans wife. Her character has the face of an angel and the heart of a demon. The most interesting character by far is Gaudet in a beautifully subtle and understated performance by Bourvil.

Good writing of course makes good actors even better and the cast is served well by the pungent dialogue of Henri Jeanson. It is shot in razor sharp black and white by veteran Armand Thirard.

This might not have the same crusading zeal as the films of the admirable and well-intentioned André Cayatte but it gets the point across just as effectively that Justice and the Law are distant cousins.

A rich woman murders her unfaithful husband, while shifting the suspicion unto his mistress. Meanwhile she's having an affair with a fearsomely efficient barrister who slips her useful tips on how to play the system. Will the wrong woman be accused and convicted, or will justice prevail ?

As you can tell from the first paragraph, this is a hugely enjoyable thriller with a clever plot. It features not one but two memorable villains : the first one is a deeply amoral femme fatale, the second is an equally cynical barrister who knows the criminal law like the back of his hand. Do watch the scenes where the barrister provides his client/lover with a suitable outfit - the aim, here, is to breathe a quiet and respectable elegance - and coaches her on how to behave and what to say before the "juge d'instruction". They're at once over-the-top cynical and deeply, uncomfortably plausible...

Many people know and appreciate Bourvil primarily as a comic, but in fact he was equally capable of tackling serious or even tragic roles. Here he's quite good as a fair-minded "juge d'instruction" who realizes someone's trying to play him like a fiddle. A superbly beautiful Marina Vlady is a femme fatale to die for, while Pierre Brasseur exudes exactly the right mix of self-confidence, brutality and cunning.

Recommended.