Diary of a Chambermaid

Wee Hunk

I had a hell of a time finding this version. Everyone seems to prefer the Renoir version. Bah! Renoir turned it into a romance. Jacquot turned it into a melodrama. Only Bunuel could go this dark. Moreau is perfect. In this one the subtext becomes very important. Your expectations are thwarted. It's the dark humor and fearlessness that I love about his work with J.C. Carriere.

ramosbarajas

In many regards, a direct and uncomplicated film. Buñuel knew what he wanted to say, and it shows. And yet, it's ambiguous by choice, and this is its greatest strength. Moreau's performance is great as the complex chambermaid. The script foreshadows many details, and they pay off nicely. The critical look at society, from all angles is expertly accomplished. Probably one of my favorites by him.

mad.lucas

Another adorable piece of art by master Buñuel, even if it doesn't contain the elements of surrealism that are common in most of his films.

Daniel S.

***1/2. Jeanne Moreau surrounded by fetishists, snails on a young girl's leg, caustic criticism of the French bourgeoisie, a ride through Luis Buñuel's obsessions. Recommended.

Christopher R. Smith

Luis Bunuel's uncomfortable, subtle comedy is sexually-charged and mostly engaging. As intriguing as the characters are, and as complex as are their relationships, the tension is slight, which makes it drag in places and never quite reach its potential dramatic or comedic heights. Still, an interesting piece of work.

Art Vandelay

While superficially one of Buñuel's most lucid and orderly works, Diary Of A Chambermaid is regardlessly one of his most beguiling, inexplicable, and unsettling pictures, containing some of his most indelible and erotically-charged imagery––the snails slithering over Claire's corpse; Jeanne Moreau's lovely legs, footwear, and maid's uniform––amidst a tapestry of pastoral repression.

Samuel Donath

I watch this film at least twice a year. At least. This film is fantastic. Bunuel and Moreau?!?!?! What follows is a beautiful, dark, tricky, and sexual tale. FANTASTIC! I only wish the Criterion Collection edition wasn't out of print.

KiNo

The finest way of attuning the tidal blur between good and evil and ambiguity, pure poetry of ambiguity of motives. The genius of Bunuel is a magnifier looking into the society of bourgeois and the fooled people by nationalism.