Les Enfants Terribles is a 1929 novel by Jean Cocteau , published by Editions Bernard Grasset. It concerns two siblings, Elisabeth and Paul, who isolate themselves from the world as they grow up, an isolation which is shattered by the stresses of their adolescence. It was first translated into English by Samuel Putnam in 1930 and published by Brewer & Warren. A later English translation by Rosamond Lehmann was published in the U.S. by New Directions ( ISBN 0811200213 ) in 1955, and in Canada by Mclelland & Stewart in 1966, with the title translated as The Holy Terrors . The book is illustrated by the author's own drawings.
27-427: The novel was made into a film of the same name , a collaboration between Cocteau and director Jean-Pierre Melville , in 1950, and inspired the opera of the same name by Philip Glass . Miloš Petrović composed a chamber opera based on the novel. The ballet La Boule de neige by the choreographer Fabrizio Monteverde [ it ] , with music by Pierluigi Castellano , is also based on this novel. The story
54-449: A German Wehrmacht lieutenant with a limp, is billetted in a house in a small village that a retired man shares with his adult niece, the pair, without having to discuss it, agree never to speak to or acknowledge the unwanted intruder. Most nights as the uncle smokes his pipe and the niece does some sewing by the fire, the officer, at first dressed in his uniform and later in civilian clothes, comes to warm himself and politely engages them in
81-466: A brief one-sided conversation. Speaking good French, he reveals that he is an unmarried composer and this is the first time he has been to France, though he has long studied and admired French literature and culture, which he seems to prefer to his own (except regarding music). Loyal to Hitler , he hopes the Nazi invasion will bring about a lasting "marriage" between France and Germany that will benefit everyone,
108-499: A car crash shortly after the wedding, Elisabeth inherits his fortune and mansion and brings Paul and Agathe to live with her. When his uncle is out of the country, Gérard stays with them, as well. At first, everyone sleeps in Elisabeth's room, but, after a fight with Elisabeth, Paul sets up a living space in another wing of the building. Agathe and Gérard also start to mostly sleep in their own rooms, and Elisabeth begins to feel lonely. In
135-432: A couturier and meets Agathe, who she invites to live in her mother's old room. The shy girl bears a strong resemblance to Paul's former classmate Dargelos, the boy who injured Paul and with whom Paul is infatuated. Paul and Agathe are immediately attracted to each other, but it takes both of them some time to realize it. Elisabeth starts to date Michael, a rich young American businessman, and they get married. When he dies in
162-424: A job as a model, where she meets Agathe, a girl who was orphaned at a young age after her drug-addicted parents committed suicide. Agathe, characterised by her strong resemblance to Dargelos, soon moves in with Paul and Elisabeth. Elisabeth is the first member of the group to get married. She weds a wealthy young man who dies on his way to a business meeting before the married couple can even enjoy their honeymoon. As
189-547: A point he comes back to day after day and illustrates by referencing Beauty and the Beast (Germany being the beast, who only needs France accept it to turn into a prince). Werner often looks warmly at the niece as he extols the virtues of France; she remains obdurately silent, but occasionally betrays her growing feelings by a faint quiver of her fingers. Werner gets some leave in the spring and spends two weeks in Paris. When he returns to
216-417: A result of his death, the siblings inherit a large house, into which they move. Paul soon finds himself in love with Agathe. He writes a letter declaring his love to her and stakes his life on her reciprocation. Elisabeth, who cannot stand to see her brother happy and knows she must draw him back into their shared private world, intercepts the letter to prevent it from reaching Agathe and tells Agathe that Gerard
243-402: A snowball fight and has to withdraw from school. The siblings rarely leave their house, and, other than a doctor and maid, their only visitor is Paul's friend Gérard, who has a crush on Elisabeth. Gérard often sleeps over, spending much of his time watching Elisabeth and Paul fight and play secret games in their shared bedroom. After Elisabeth and Paul's mother dies, Elisabeth becomes a model for
270-444: Is also a poison-enthusiast, as a gift. The poison is opium (to which Jean Cocteau, the author of this book, was himself addicted), and Paul takes most of it in despair over Agathe. As he lies dying, he is attended by Agathe, who, reviving Paul temporarily, confesses her love to him, and Elisabeth's plot is laid bare. At this moment, Elisabeth senses that Paul's death is yet another twist in the game and that, by dying, he would beat her to
297-515: Is enthralled by the siblings. However, after Paul becomes ill when Dargelos throws a snowball with a stone inside at him, Elisabeth cares for both him and their mother. While Elisabeth nurses Paul, it is revealed that the siblings enjoy a relationship characterised by a psychodrama known in the book as "The Game", which can only be played in their shared bedroom, elevated by the Game-play into "The Room". The game devised by Paul and Elisabeth often involves
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#1732869625977324-502: Is in love with her. Then, Elisabeth manages to bully Gerard, who is in love with her, into marrying Agathe and, as a result, helps break her brother’s heart. She feels herself condemned and pursued by the Furies thereafter, for the crime of having destroyed Paul and Agathe's happiness through deceit. After Agathe and Gerard's marriage, Gerard meets with Dargelos, who now collects poisons. Dargelos sends one of these poisons to Paul, whom he knows
351-523: The 1942 novella of the same name written by Vercors (the pen name of Jean Bruller ). Set during the Second World War in occupied France , the story concerns the relationship of a Frenchman (Jean-Marie Robain) and his niece ( Nicole Stéphane ) with a German lieutenant, Werner von Ebrennac ( Howard Vernon ), who is billetted in their house. The film was released by Gaumont on April 22, 1949. In occupied France early in 1941, when Werner von Ebrennac,
378-515: The 1950s onward. It is the only Cocteau film without a score by Georges Auric . Les Enfants terribles was released in Paris on 29 March 1950. It took in 255,224 admissions in Paris and 719,844 admissions in France as a whole. Le Silence de la mer (1949 film) Le Silence de la mer (lit. 'The silence of the sea') is a 1949 French war drama film written and directed by Jean-Pierre Melville , in his directorial debut. Adapted from
405-589: The Holocaust and was told by a group of fanatic German officers, including an old friend, that the Nazi plan is to destroy the French spirit and culture and subjugate France to Germany forever. Stopping short of urging the uncle and niece to rebel, Werner announces that he requested a transfer to the front, and he is leaving in the morning. When he says "adieu", the niece breaks her silence to whisper "adieu" in return. The next day,
432-455: The Vivaldi concertos in the film has been remarked upon, analyzed, and praised by numerous film critics and theorists, including Noël Burch and Edward Baron Turk . This was the first use of baroque incidental music in film; Les Enfants terribles was also one of the first films exclusively using pre-existing classical music as underscore music, a practice that became increasingly common from
459-636: The attention of Jean Cocteau , who commissioned Melville to direct a film adaptation of his 1929 novel Les Enfants terribles . The film was shot on location in Paris, at the Société nationale des entreprises de presse and the Théâtre Pigalle ; in Montmorency for the seaside shoplifting scene; and in Ermenonville for Michael's car accident scene. The shoplifting scene was directed by Cocteau, as Melville
486-467: The course of her investigation of the breakdown of her social circle, Elisabeth learns that Agathe loves Paul, but thinks he hates her, and that Paul has written Agathe a letter to declare his love for her. Instead of bringing the two together, however, Elisabeth intercepts the letter and destroys it, and then convinces Gérard and Agathe to marry each other. They move out, and Elisabeth has Paul to herself again, though they still are living in separate parts of
513-420: The final move, so she shoots herself and dies a matter of seconds before he does, leaving a frightened Agathe with two dead bodies. Les Enfants Terribles (film) Les Enfants terribles (literal English translation: The Terrible Children ; English title: The Strange Ones ) is a 1950 French film directed by Jean-Pierre Melville , with a screenplay adapted by Jean Cocteau from his 1929 novel of
540-404: The mansion and Paul is now despondent over the loss of Agathe. One day, Agathe and Gérard visit. Gérard brings an exotic poison that Dargelos, who Gérard had run into, asked Gérard to give Paul, as Paul and Dargelos were both interested in poisons when they went to school together. Some time later, Agathe awakens Elisabeth to say she just got a letter from Paul in which he said he was going to take
567-424: The poison. The women rush to Paul and find him near death. While Elisabeth is out of the room, Paul and Agathe figure out that Elisabeth had lied to keep them apart. Elisabeth returns and, realizing she has been found out, says she could not lose Paul to Agathe. Paul dies blaming his sister for his woes, and Elisabeth shoots herself in the head. Melville's first feature film, Le Silence de la mer (1949), attracted
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#1732869625977594-410: The same name about the tangled relationship of a close brother and sister. The film's soundtrack of Vivaldi concertos was unusual at the time and praised for its use in increasing the dramatic tension of the plot. Cocteau provided the voice-over narration of the film. Elisabeth looks after her bedridden mother and is very protective of her teenage brother Paul, particularly after he is injured in
621-413: The siblings trying to annoy or irritate each other, Elisabeth through histrionic behaviour and Paul through a taciturn refusal to be affected by her, where the winner is the one who leaves the contest with the last word, a sense of superiority, and, ideally, having caused a display of angry frustration from the other. This game continues after Paul recovers and their mother has died. Elisabeth soon takes up
648-461: The uncle sets out a quotation from Anatole France for Werner: " Il est beau qu'un soldat désobéisse à des ordres criminels. " ("It is a fine thing when a soldier disobeys a criminal order.") Werner reads it, exchanges glances with the uncle, and leaves. The niece and her uncle eat lunch in silence. Shot in 1947, Le Silence de la mer was released in Paris on 22 April 1949. It took in 464,032 admissions in Paris and 1,371,687 admissions in France as
675-400: The village, the uncle and niece do not see him for over a week. Finally, one night he knocks at the door and does not enter until the uncle, breaking his silence, invites the man in. Once more wearing his uniform, Werner tells his hosts about how his excitement to see Paris was undercut by the presence of the occupying forces and finally turned to disillusionment and despair once he learned about
702-401: Was adapted by the writer Gilbert Adair for his 1988 novel The Holy Innocents , which was the basis for Bernardo Bertolucci 's 2003 film The Dreamers . The story concerns the siblings Paul and Elisabeth, who start the story without a father and with a bed-ridden mother, whom Elisabeth looks after. At school, Paul is obsessed with the attractive Dargelos, while Paul’s school friend Gerard
729-454: Was ill the day it was filmed. Melville said Cocteau followed his directing instructions "to the letter." The soundtrack of the film is almost entirely classical music by Vivaldi , including one Bach transcription of a Vivaldi work. The soundtrack consists of extracts from: Cocteau had originally wanted the score to be jazz music, but was convinced by Melville to accept the use of the Vivaldi pieces instead. The successful dramatic use of
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