Pièges

Catherine Farel (Lucie) tells her dance club friend Marie Déa (Adrienne) that she has found a way out of the nightclub hostess lifestyle by responding to a personal ad. Uh-oh, Farel has just become the latest victim of a serial murderer who lures his victims by placing personal ads. Déa is approached by Chief of Police André Brunot to work undercover by responding to personal ads and seeking out this killer. She accepts the mission.

This is an odd film because it flits between tense thriller and musical comedy, especially with the introduction of Maurice Chevalier (Robert). The film goes on too long because of this attempt to blend all the different genres and the songs by Chevalier are just not needed. The film holds some surprises and it is a good story. Déa should be top-billed as it is her thread that we follow and she has amusing and weird encounters with some lonely people placing advertisements. All the cast are good in their roles - and Erich von Stroheim (Pears) plays a lunatic fashionista who has totally lost the plot. The film has a tense ending and things don't become clear until then when you get that moment of realization. There are some strange and dangerous people in this world.