Le Lit à colonnes (1942) - film review

In 1880, the warders and inmates at a French prison are equally afraid of Clément Porey-Cave, an implacable prison governor.  Porey-Cave even intimidates his wife Madeleine and loves only his daughter, Marie-Dorée.  In town, he has a mistress called Yada, the star of the show at the Grand Café where all the notables of the district congregate.  Although Yada appears devoted to Porey-Cave, she is actually in love with Jacques, a talented violinist.  When he learns that one of his prisoners, Rémy Bonvent, writes music, Porey-Cave decides to make use of his talents.  He puts him in a cell by himself and gives him paper and ink.  Bonvent begins to write an opera entitled Le lit à colonnes, inspired by his secret passion for Marie-Dorée.  One evening, Porey-Cave shows Yada and Jacques some of the music which Bonvent has composed and pretends that he is the author.  As Porey-Cave prepares to stage the opera, he doesn’t know that one of his warders has told Bonvent that he has stolen his work...
© Willems Henri (Brussels, Belgium)

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