La Garçonne (The Bachelor Girl or The Flapper) is a 1936 French black-and-white film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Victor Margueritte. It was directed by Jean de Limur and starred Marie Bell (in the title role), Arletty and Edith Piaf.
Plot
The eponymous garçonne or flapper is Monique Lerbier, an emancipated French woman who leaves home to escape a marriage of convenience to a man she does not love which her parents have forced on her. She then falls into all sorts of carnal temptations and artificial pleasures previously unknown to her. These include her being seduced into a lesbian love affair by a chanteuse character (played by Edith Piaf), ensuring the film became a succès de scandale. Another actress in the film, Arletty, said of it:
Cast
Marie Bell : Monique Lerbier
Arletty : Niquette
Henri Rollan : Régis Boisselot
Maurice Escande : Lucien Vigneret
Jaque Catelain : Georges Blanchet
Pierre Etchepare : Plombino
Philippe Hersent : Peer Rys
Jean Worms : Monsieur Lerbier
Marcelle Praince : Madame Lerbier
Vanda Gréville : Élisabeth
Suzy Solidor : Anika
Édith Piaf : the chanteuse
Jean Tissier : Monsieur des Souzaies
Marcelle Géniat : Aunt Sylvestre
Junie Astor
Jane Marken
Crew
Director : Jean de Limur
Writers: Albert Dieudonné after the novel of the same name by Victor Margueritte (Éditions Flammarion, 1922) Adaptation : Marion Fort Dialogue : Jacques Natanson Music : Jean Wiener Song : Quand même, sung by Édith Piaf, lyrics by Louis Poterat, music by Jean Wiener Cinematography: Roger Hubert, Charlie Bauer Sound engineers : Robert Tesseire Design : Lucien Aguettand Editing : Jean Oser
Production details
Production company : Franco London Films (France) Principal photography : Began in December 1935 Format : Black-and-white — Monophonic sound — 35 mm