Madeleine

Dir. David Lean

UK 1949 | Black & white | 91 mins | Drama

Cast: Ann Todd, Leslie Banks, Ivan Desny

In this period drama, set in Victorian Glasgow and based on a true story, Lean exploits the ambiguous and enigmatic screen presence of Ann Todd. Here she plays a young woman who, rebelling against her patriarchal father, falls for a penniless but exploitative French aristocrat who later dies of arsenic poisoning. Madeleine is anything but a victim, daring to expose her sexuality. Guy Green’s deep-focus photography owes much to Citizen Kane.

Available on: DCP, 35mm