Diabolique (1955)

Diabolique (1955), produced and directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot.

"The Devils".

The headmaster of a boys school is abusive to his wife and mistress, both teachers at the school. Without getting too explicit, it's pretty clear the women have become lovers and they conspire to murder him. Establishing alibis, they drown him in a bathtub and dump the body in the school pool.

Tired of waiting for the body to be discovered (it's scummy water) they have the pool drained and find that the body is missing.

Quite naturally the women ask themselves: What in the Hell is Going On?

All sorts of spooky and inexplicable things start happening. Is there a rational explanation or not? Is someone playing games with them? Or do we have a ghost or a dead man walking? We switch back and forth several times, seeking the solution. This culminates is a fine terro-rama final segment with several more twists.

Lots of Hitchcockian developments: the good and bad luck you have when guiltily transporting a body in the back of your car. The intense anticipation of waiting for a discovery that never happens. The genial retired detective who just wants to help. Sure he does.

The original story was written by the same team who wrote the basis for Vertigo (1958). Lore has it that Hitchcock just missed purchasing the film rights.

Criterion Blu-ray. Neither Netflix nor Classicflix have it.