The Champagne Murders ** (1967, Anthony Perkins, Maurice Ronet, Yvonne Furneaux, Stéphane Audran) – Classic Movie Review 8646

Director Claude Chabrol’s 1967 thriller The Champagne Murders [Le Scandale] is an unexpected misfire from Chabrol during his best period, with Maurice Ronet starring as Paul Wagner, an oddball playboy who may be a murderer. Paul Wagner is the partner of the champagne tycoon Christine Belling (Yvonne Furneaux) and suspects that her gigolo husband Christopher Belling (Anthony Perkins) is guilty of the murders for which he Wagner has been framed.

With Anthony Perkins as the old gigolo and Stéphane Audran (then Mme Chabrol) also starring and well cast, all should be well. But tone, mood, pacing and nuance are (at least in the English version) all wrong. It is long, slow and convoluted.

Maybe the problem was that Chabrol was working for Universal Productions France and filming each scene in both French and English, and so trying to please both audiences, though this did result in a wide release in both Britain and America by Universal Pictures.

The UK film critic Derek Prouse worked on the English-language version.

Also in the cast are Suzanne Lloyd, Henry Jones, Catherine Sola, George Skaff, Annie Vidal, and Christa Lang.

Champagne Pommery is thanked for its cooperation.

The Champagne Murders [Le Scandale] is directed by Claude Chabrol, runs 110 minutes, is made by Universal (France), is released by by Universal Pictures, is written by Claude Brulé, Derek Prouse and Paul Gégauff (dialogue French version), from an original story by William Benjamin, is shot by Jean Rabier, produced by Jacques Natteau and is scored by Pierre Jansen.

Claude Chabrol (1930–2010).

Stéphane Audran (1932–2018) was married to Claude Chabrol from 4 December 1964 to 1980 (divorced, with one child).

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8646

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