Uriah43 A rich man by the name of "Eric Carradine" (Curd Jürgens) wants to build a casino but needs the land owned by working class man named "Antoine Tardieu" (Christian Marquand) and his family. As it so happens, both men know a young and attractive woman named "Juliete Hardy" (Brigitte Bardot) who lives life to the fullest and it's because of her wanton disregard for convention that each want her in the worst possible way. Although Juliette loves Antoine and gives serious consideration to running off with him, she accidentally overhears Antoine bragging to a friend that he plans to sleep with her that night and then cast her aside the next morning. To further complicate matters, upon returning home that evening her foster parents tell her that they have decided to return her to the orphanage within a few days because of her flirtatious conduct. So with nowhere else to go she accepts a sudden marriage proposal from Antoine's younger brother "Michel" (Jean-Louis Trintignant) who absolutely adores her. Needless to say, this infuriates Antoine and the rest of the family who don't think very highly of her at all. Not only that but she doesn't change her conduct in the least--which only intensifies the sexual tension for all concerned. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this film created quite a stir when it first came out and it's not hard to imagine why as Brigitte Bardot's performance was absolutely sensational. Having said that, however, I don't think the overall drama was nearly as sharp as it could have been. Additionally, I think it is only fair to say that this film's subject matter pales in comparison to other movies of this type today and with that in mind I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

JohnHowardReid The much-touted BB is on display here for all to see and admire. But frankly, she looks more provocative in the stills and posters outside the cinema than she does in the movie itself. It's an uninspired little quadrangle tale in which a boring lot of unsympathetic characters posture pathetically against authentic St Tropez backgrounds. In the course of over ninety minutes, nothing much of interest happens. It's one of these stories in which a lot of detailed groundwork is constantly being laid to give the audience the impression that something dramatically involving is just about to happen — but it never does. The businessman's efforts to acquire waterfront land suddenly bear fruit halfway through by a simple stratagem (and why is the anchorage allegedly worth millions anyway?) and how come the Morins who are painted as villainous "step-parents" at the beginning and from whom we expect some dazzling opposition to BB's plans, supportively change color without any explanation? Even the long-awaited climax in which one of the leading characters gets shot proves an absolute fizzer.

Steven Torrey Miss Bardot plays the role of innocent waif with a certain--well, innocence, that few modern actresses could pull off so well. Come to think of it, few actresses of any age could pull off. It is not just innocence, it is playful innocence. And at age 21 or 22 when she made this, Miss Bardot was young and innocent and playful.She, of course, marries the wrong brother to spite the one who actually wants her; she falls for the older man (played by Curt Jurgens) who wants to buy land for a casino in St. Tropez, but disguises his intention by pretending to build yet another ship building company. And this older man, who seems to want nothing more than to have her for a play-pal, ends up being structural to her life with her husband.She cheats on husband, unexpected denouement of reinforced love, of re-committed love, of under-appreciated love for that husband.I didn't find the movie shallow, trite, or obvious. And by the standards of 1956--even by those standards it was fairly tame for anyone who was used to visiting nudist camps. "Playboy" had just made an appearance about two years previous, and even by that standard, it was tame. It was a time before people confused sex with porn. The Legion of Decency condemned the film for the nudity, but certainly by modern standards, it is hardly shocking. (Shocking that there was a time that the Legion of Decency even existed, much less listened to.)

sunznc Oh boy, every now and then I grab a film that I've heard so much about hoping that I'm in for a real treat. Something I can really sink my teeth into. Well, this isn't that type of film. We all get suckered in now & then. This film would not be given the time if Bridget Bardot had not played the lead female. No one would give a damn. The film is boring and tedious and so hard to sit through. I had to fight to stay awake. The title is the most dramatic thing about the film. The film itself never raises it's pulse with exception of one scene. The rest is tepid and nothing ever really happens. Joe Bob Briggs includes this in his book Profoundly Disturbing and I can't figure out what had such an impact on him. I guess there are one or two scenes here that really grab you but they are very brief and not worth the effort in my opinion.No, I doubt anyone will want to sit through this twice.