Actress Nicole Stéphane (1923)

The French film, The Terrible Children (1950), directed by Jean-Pierre Melville and adapted from Jean Cocteau’s novel of the same name, portrays the complex bond between a brother and sister. Elisabeth takes care of their bedridden mother and is fiercely protective of her younger brother Paul. When Paul gets hurt in a snowball fight and has to drop out of school, Elisabeth becomes even more shielding towards him. This causes them to spend most of their time at home with very little visitors besides the doctor and maid. One exception is Paul’s friend Gérard, ...

The French drama film The Silence of the Sea (1949) is Jean-Pierre Melville’s directorial debut. It is based on the book of the same name by Jean Bruller, published in 1942. Set in occupied France in 1941, the story follows a retired man and his adult niece who share a house in a small village. Their peaceful coexistence is disrupted when they are forced to accommodate Werner von Ebrennac, a German lieutenant with a limp. Despite their mutual dislike for him, they silently agree to never speak or acknowledge his presence. The officer often joins them by the fire at ...