Summary
Pierre Lachenay is a well-known publisher and lecturer, married to Franca, witb a young
daughter, Sabine. On a business trip to Lisbon, he meets an air hostess, Nicole,
to whom he is instantly attracted. Lachenay and Nicole start a love affair, which they
continue in secrecy when they return to Paris. Later, Lachenay asks Nicole to accompany
him to Reims, where he has to give a lecture. In trying to keep their affair a secret
from his acquaintances, Lachenay goes too far and Nicole is upset. To make up, the
two lovers spend a day in a country hotel – a treat which Lachenay had earlier promised
to his wife. When Lachenay's wife discovers what has been happening, she is furious
and decides to take a brutal revenge on her husband.
Review
Coming straight after Truffaut's superlative Jules et Jim, La Peau Douce
is another tragic love triangle in a similar mould. Whilst not as emotionally
charged as the earlier film, La Peau Douce is a compelling and moving piece of
cinema.
As in virtually all of Truffaut’s works, there is an element of auto-biography in
the film. The story is about a fairly timid middle-aged man who, bored with his
current marital situation, develops an intense attraction for a younger woman who appears
to be captivated by his charm and intelligence – a recurring theme in Truffaut’s
own life. Probably because the story is so in tune with his own experiences, the
film has a feeling of integrity and truthfulness that is instantly captivating.
The characters seem to behave exactly as you would expect them to, as if the events unfolding
were true, not a work of fiction.
The film’s tragic theme is tainted with real-life tragedy. Françoise Dorléac
was killed in a road accident a short while after the film, something which had a profound
impact on Truffaut, who remained a close friend of the young actress. Dorléac’s
performance in this film is certainly one of its most appealing characteristics.
The film’s other star, Jean Desailly, by then a very well-known actor in France,
is equally impressive. It is interesting to compare his performance in this film,
as the repressed, timid, slightly melancholic academic, with some of his earlier more
dashing and flamboyant roles in films of the 1940s and 50s. Despite some personal
difficulties with Truffaut when making this film, Desailly offers probably his best performance
in La peau douce.
Other striking aspects of the film are Georges Delerue’s alternately racy and melancholic
music, and Raoul Coutard’s fluid photography. With Truffaut’s energetic
direction, the film has some of the characteristics of a Hitchcock thriller – not
surprising given Truffaut’s profound admiration for the great English film director.
(After this film, Truffaut would devote several years to writing the definitive biography
of Alfred Hitchcock.)
La peau douce is an engaging study about ephemeral desire, inability to commit
to a course of action, and the jealousy of a woman deceived by her husband. How
these elements conspire to destroy a marriage is brilliantly analysed by Truffaut, and
the result is one of his better films.
© James Travers 2000
See also:
The life of François Truffaut
Les 400 coups
Tirez sur le pianiste
Jules et Jim
Farenheit 451
Baisers volés
Le Dernier métro
Buy films by François Truffaut
More about the French New Wave
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