Les demi-vierges: A dusty look at old-fashioned romance

Is it worth your time?

Honestly? Only if you have a very specific itch for pre-war French drama. If you're looking for something that moves, this definitely isn't it. People who love historical costumes and stiff dialogue will find a lot to chew on, but everyone else will probably be checking their phones after ten minutes.

It’s funny how some movies just feel heavy. Not deep, just heavy. Les demi-vierges feels like it's wearing a corset it can't quite breathe in. Every scene has this weird, polite tension where nobody says what they actually mean. It reminded me a bit of the social maneuvering you see in The Case of the Lucky Legs, but with way less charm and way more brooding.

The dialogue is... well, it's very proper. There’s a scene about halfway through where two characters are talking about marriage prospects, and the camera just sits there. It sits there for so long I started looking at the wallpaper in the background. It was a nice pattern, I guess? Floral. Probably expensive for the time.

Marie Bell is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here. She has this way of looking at the camera that says, "I know this script is a bit of a mess, but I'm going to commit." It's almost brave.

Small things I noticed:

• The lighting in the parlor scenes is weirdly yellow. It makes everyone look like they have a mild cold.
• There’s a hat in one scene that is honestly a crime against fashion. It’s huge. It takes up half the frame.
• The pacing? It’s more of a crawl than a walk.

I kept thinking about The Girl from Nowhere while watching this. There’s that same sense of wanting to be something more than just a typical romance, but it gets tangled up in its own rules. It’s not a bad movie. It’s just very, very tired. Maybe it just needs a nap. I know I did.

It’s not trying to be a masterpiece, and that’s a relief. It’s just a snapshot of a world that doesn't exist anymore. Some of the shots are actually quite pretty if you look past the melodrama. 🎞️