Mississippi Mermaid

1969, Movie, GP, 123 mins

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Belmondo is a millionaire tobacco planter who becomes engaged to Deneuve through a personal column. He is taken by her beauty and they soon marry, but she leaves with his bank account. He hires a private detective to track her down, but eventually discovers her himself, or so he thinks. The girl he finds is not his wife, but bears an uncanny resemblance to her (not surprising, since Deneuve plays both roles). Eventually Belmondo learns that his new companion is trying to kill him. As he is about to be poisoned, he professes his love for Deneuve, who promptly knocks the cup from his hand and shamefully vows to love him forever. This is Truffaut's most successful attempt to blend a complex, Hitchcockian genre film with his own personality. It was also his first chance to work with superstars, ensuring success at the box office. The film is full of references to cinema--a clip from LA MARSEILLAISE (the picture is dedicated to Jean Renoir, whose film LA CARROSSE D'OR [THE GOLDEN COACH] was the inspiration for the name of Truffaut's production company), and homages to Humphrey Bogart, Nick Ray, Honore de Balzac, Jean Cocteau, and a Cahiers Du Cinema editor who bore the same name as this film's detective, Comolli. leave a comment
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Mississippi Mermaid
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