The Diary of a Chambermaid
Screening on Film
Directed by Jean Renoir.
With Paulette Goddard, Burgess Meredith, Francis Lederer.
US, 1946, 35mm, black & white, 86 min.
Print source: HFA
With Paulette Goddard, Burgess Meredith, Francis Lederer.
US, 1946, 35mm, black & white, 86 min.
Print source: HFA
Still not having any success with the studios, Renoir’s fourth Hollywood film was an independent production that hearkened back to his love of French naturalist literature. Renoir had long wanted to adapt Octave Mirbeau’s 1900 novel, which details the decadence of the upper classes as observed by their cynical servants. If the material seems close to The Rules of the Game,the filmmaker took an approach diametrically opposed to the realism of the earlier film. Shooting everything—even exteriors—on soundstage sets, the result is another example of the director’s use of theatricality to give his material an uncanny edge. The use of the soundstage also allows Renoir to indulge his love of the highly mobile camera.
Part of film series
Screenings from this program
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The Complete Jean Renoir
The Diary of a Chambermaid
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1946
Screening on Film
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This Land is Mine
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1943
Screening on Film
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The Woman on the Beach
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1947
Screening on Film
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Catherine, or A Life Without Joy
Directed by Albert Dieudonné and Jean Renoir, 1924
Live Musical Accompaniment
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The Southerner
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1945
Screening on FilmRecently Restored
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The Little Theatre of Jean Renoir
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1970
Screening on Film
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The Elusive Corporal
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1962
Screening on Film
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The Testament of Dr. Cordelier
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1961
Screening on Film
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Boudu Saved From Drowning
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1932
Screening on Film
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Elena and Her Men
Directed by Jean Renoir, 1956
Screening on Film
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Jean Renoir, the Boss, Part 2: Directing the Actor
Directed by Jacques Rivette, 1967
