Miss Nitouche

A remake of his brother Marc's movie of the thirties which I have not seen,"Mam'Zelle Nitouche seemed to indicate that Yves Allégret,after making great movies in the 1947-1953 era,was a spent force .

Even Fernandel was not able to save this dud ;the script is awful:the first half is a spate of clichés about mistaken identities (the earnest organist of the convent writes light operettas);the second is even worse,recalling the coarse comedies of the thirties ,with the obligatory funny trick of a female presence in the barracks .

Louis De Funès appears (but you've got to be patient) as a sergeant .Pier Angeli ,the actress James Dean wanted to marry, is cast as the false ingénue.

It was the first time Y.Allégret had experimented color,at a time when the French cinema was mostly black and white :pearls before swine.

Word to the wise :take "Manèges" instead.